U.S. President Donald Trump signed a bill into law on Wednesday that will force the U.S. Justice Department to release more information from the dossier related to the late convicted sexual predator Jeffrey Epstein.

Trump had promised during the campaign to make Epstein's files public. He later turned around and tried to prevent that, arguing that it was a "Democratic sham."

Earlier this week, he changed his mind again and asked Republicans to support the release of the files. In the end, the vote was almost unanimous - the motion passed 427 to 1 in the House and the Senate also passed it unanimously.

After signing the bill, Trump portrayed Epstein as a Democratic ally and said the upcoming release of the documents would reveal "their connections" to him.

It's unclear, however, exactly what will eventually be made public and to what extent. The legislation allows the Justice Department to withhold personal information about Epstein's victims and materials that would compromise an active investigation.

The new law was passed by US lawmakers just days after Democrats on the Oversight Committee released a package of materials that reopened questions about Trump's ties to Epstein - including an email in which Epstein suggests Trump "knew about the girls".

Trump has long denied any close relationship with Epstein, claiming that he banned him from his Mar-a-Lago club around 2000. No evidentiary claim has been made that Trump was involved in Epstein's crimes.

(reuters, politico, est)