As the hearing continues, Senator Chris Coons, a Democrat, tells Patel he is concerned the FBI has become political.

Coons mentions Patel has "cleaned house", driving out staff who worked on investigations into President Trump.

Three senior officials who were fired last month sued Patel, claiming they were terminated illegally for political reasons, and at the direction of the White House.

Patel says he disagrees with a lot of Coons' statement - but cites ongoing litigation as a reason he can't respond directly to some claims.

Josh Hawley, a Republican, begins with questions about the killing of Charlie Kirk.

Patel says that the FBI is working to secure information from the Discord group chat where Tyler Robinson reportedly identified himself as the shooter.

(As a reminder, a Discord spokesperson earlier confirmed that Robinson appeared to admit to the killing on the platform).

Patel adds that investigators will be speaking with "anyone and everyone involved in that Discord chat" and that they will be "running out every lead".

Asked if there were about 20 Discord users in the chat, Patel says it's "a lot more".

Hawley also asks if the shooting may have been tied to antipathy toward Christians. Patel says those closest to the suspect are going to know the most about his beliefs and ideologies.

Amy Klobuchar, a Democrat, is now speaking.

Coming back to Kirk, she talks about rising political violence in the US. She also cites the June assassination of Democrat Minnesota representative Melissa Hortman and her husband.

She also mentioned the recent shooting at Annunciation Catholic School in Minneapolis, where two children were killed.

Wrapping up, she directs a question to Patel about gun violence, and if he would support a federal ban on assault weapons.

The FBI director says he wont weigh in on the creation of legislation.

Image source, Reuters

Lindsey Graham, a Republican, is now asking questions, and halfway through gets to the Charlie Kirk case. But he does not mention the investigation - or criticism of Patel's handling of the probe.

Instead he asks about the role of social media in the killing, and calls for strengthening the government's role in taking harmful content down. Patel agrees with almost everything Graham brings up.

"The data shows that social media is wildly out of control when it comes to radicalising," Patel says.

We're seeing a hearing that very clearly follow partisan lines here.

As Graham asks Patel about drug smuggling from Venezuela, and fentanyl precursor chemicals made in China, Kash calmly speaks at length and finds areas of agreement.

It's a stark contrast to how he handled almost all of the questions from Democrat Dick Durbin.

Kash Patel is performing for an audience of onepublished at 15:07 BST 16 September

15:07 BST 16 September

Bernd Debusmann Jr
Reporting from Washington DC

Over the past two days, we've seen Kash Patel become the focus of mounting criticism for his handling of the Charlie Kirk assassination - to which he's mounted a robust defence on American airwaves, and again today.

Yesterday, he took the unusual step of appearing on Fox News twice, defending his handling of the case and detailing "shocking" evidence that he says the FBI has uncovered as a result of what he's described as an aggressive posture.

While Patel is addressing any criticism on national airwaves, he is also performing for President Trump at a time when some US news outlets - including Fox - have reported growing exasperation with Patel from within the administration.

These apparent tensions did not begin with the Kirk case, and also included reports of a spat with Attorney General Pam Bondi over the handling of the Jeffrey Epstein case.

Many in the White House and broader "Trump world" are keenly aware that Patel - who lacked the qualifications and experience of previous FBI directors - was a controversial pick for the job.

So far - at least publicly - Trump has stood by Patel. The two reportedly played golf together at Trump's estate in New Jersey over the weekend, and Trump said Patel was doing a "great job".

Many in the White House, however, will be carefully watching Patel's appearance on Capitol Hill to gauge whether criticism from Democrats needs to be addressed.

Ranking member, the Democrat Senator Dick Durbin, is now asking questions.

His first question is about claims the FBI staff have to take polygraph tests to determine their loyalty.

Patel says he won't respond to reporting that is "fake" and that he won't get into any results of polygraph tests, as they are private discussions.

Patel and Durbin are already speaking over each other, with Patel pushing back against the senator's questions and instead wanting to talk about crime reduction.

The Republican chairman of the committee, Chuck Grassley, starts the questioning by talking about Jeffrey Epstein.

He asks whether Epstein was an asset for the US or a foreign government, and for specific names of agencies or other countries he may have worked for.

Patel says he only knows that Epstein was "not a source" for the FBI.

Grassley moves on to talk about the Biden family, sexual misconduct by FBI agents, terrorism threats, and migrant children.

Bernd Debusmann Jr
Reporting from Washington DC

Away from this hearing, we've just heard from Donald Trump as he headed off on Marine One to begin his state visit to the UK.

He was asked about Patel - and said that he is still confident in his controversial pick to become FBI director.

"Look at what he did in two days," he said, referring it seems to the Kirk case. "Usually takes multiple days. Years. I have confidence in everyone in the administration."

We may hear more from Trump at Joint Base Andrews or on Air Force One as his trip begins.

Kash Patel is now listing some of the things he says the FBI has accomplished under his leadership.

He talks at length about gangs, human traffickers and hackers, and he says his agency has taken 1,600kg of the opiate fentanyl off of the streets.

He claims that arrests are up and crimes are down, particularly in places where the Trump administration has sent National Guard troops

Patel also brings up the Jeffrey Epstein case - Patel puts the blame on the federal prosecutor who investigated the paedophile nearly 20 years ago.

The FBI director then concludes his opening statement on a combative note. If anyone wants to criticise his years of service, "please bring it on".

We're now going to questioning.

Patel gives a timeline of the FBI's involvement in the Charlie Kirk investigation, from the immediate aftermath of the shooting to Tyler Robinson's arrest.

He says Kirk was shot on 12:23pm local time on 10 September and less than a day later the FBI released the first set of images of the suspect.

Later than evening they also released a video of the suspect and enhanced photos, he said. The suspect's father recognised his son in the video, Patel said.

"That is the FBI working with the public as a promise to being transparent and providing critical information," he said.

He does not touch upon his misleading post about the arrest of "the subject", which he later backtracked on.

Patel is now updating members on the investigation into Charlie Kirk's killer.

We'll have all the key lines here - and remember, you can watch live at the top of the page.

Image source, Reuters

After Grassley's praise, lines are now being drawn.

Dick Durbin, the highest-ranking Democrat on the committee, is now speaking and unsurprisingly has a completely different take on Patel's tenure.

He calls Patel "arguably the most partisan FBI director ever" and runs down a list of his anti-FBI and pro-Trump comments prior to leading the agency.

Durbin continues by criticising Patel's leadership and says 5,000 people have left the FBI, amounting to "disastrous brain drain." He also alleges Patel of watering down training for new agents.

All in all, the Democratic senator is painting a picture of chaos and incompetence.

Senate Judiciary Committee Chair Chuck Grassley opens the meeting by addressing the killing of Charlie Kirk. He says he has asked Patel for an update on the matter.

It's largely praise from Senator Grassley, who goes on to laud Patel and the work of the FBI.

Kash Patel is in the room and is about to testify before the Senate Judiciary Committee.

You can follow the key updates here and click watch live at the top of this page to stream the hearing.

Image source, Reuters

Kash Patel, 45, leads the US Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI).

The FBI director leads 37,000 employees across 55 US field offices, as well as 350 satellite offices and more than 60 other foreign locations.

He quickly rose within Trump's circle after he was hired as a national security aide in 2019, and in 2020 was appointed chief of staff to the head of the Pentagon.

Patel, the son of Indian immigrants, is a former defence lawyer and federal prosecutor.

In his confirmation hearings, Patel denied keeping a list of "deep state" enemies, while playing down controversial remarks he had made, such as referring to law enforcement officials who investigated Trump as "criminal gangsters".

In his memoir Government Gangsters, published in 2023, Patel called for an eradication of what he called "government tyranny" within the FBI by firing "the top ranks".

Kash Patel is facing two congressional hearings in the next two days - from members of the Senate and House of Representatives - and can expect questions on:

Charlie Kirk investigation: The FBI director will face questions about his handling of the case, including an early announcement that "the subject for the horrific shooting" was in custody. That person was released soon afterwards.

Mass firings and lawsuits: Patel has dismissed several senior FBI officials, including former acting director Brian Driscoll. Driscoll and two other former FBI officials have filed a lawsuit, saying Patel fired them because of White House influence.

Epstein files: Lawmakers have pressed Patel over his decision in July not to release more documents from the Epstein case, despite his pledge that "there will be no cover-ups".

Image source, Reuters

As we just reported, Kash Patel has faced criticism for his X posts in the aftermath of Charlie Kirk's shooting.

On the day Kirk was killed, just before authorities began their news conference, the FBI director posted on X:

"The subject for the horrific shooting today that took the life of Charlie Kirk is now in custody."

The comment led to confusion, when officials in the news conference said the suspect was still at large.

A couple of hours later, Patel released another post, saying "the subject in custody has been released after an interrogation by law enforcement".

On Monday, in an interview with Fox News, Patel said he was just "being transparent".

"Could I have worded it a little better in the heat of the moment? Sure. But do I regret putting it out? Absolutely not."

Sakshi Venkatraman
Live reporter

Later today, the suspect in Charlie Kirk's murder, Tyler Robinson, will appear in court in Utah for the first time.

But before that, we're going to hear from FBI Director Kash Patel, who has been leading the federal investigation into the killing.

Patel will appear before the Senate Judiciary Committee in half an hour, and he will face scrutiny about his handling of the case.

On the day of the shooting, Patel said on X that "the subject" was in custody - then 90 minutes later said they had been released. His posts came a day before Robinson's family turned him in.

The FBI director has since said he doesn't regret his posts - but admitted he could have worded them better.

"I was being transparent with working with the public on our findings, as I had them," he said on Fox News yesterday.

You'll be able to watch live at the top of the page from 09:00 ET / 14:00 BST - and follow the key lines here.