A busy day at the White Housepublished at 17:56 British Summer Time

17:56 BST

Bernd Debusmann Jr
Reporting from the White House

Reporters in the White House Briefing RoomImage source, Bernd Debusmann Jr / BBC

For reporters covering the Trump White House, an extremely crowded briefing room has become a common sight.

Today, however, strikes me as perhaps busier than usual. For the last half hour, the aisles on both sides of the briefing room have already been packed. Getting to my seat was a surprisingly physical struggle.

There is, after all, quite a lot happening today that the world’s media is hoping that the White House weighs in on.

Besides the Israeli strike on Qatar, there is the ongoing matter of the Epstein documents, crackdowns on crime in Washington DC – and potentially, soon, in Chicago – as well as all the happening nearby on the Hill.

Stay with us for more updates.