ISTANBUL

The US Senate on Saturday confirmed former Fox News host and prosecutor Jeanine Pirro as the US attorney for the District of Columbia.

Pirro, 74, is a close ally of President Donald Trump and previously co-hosted Fox News program The Five, where she frequently interviewed Trump. She was confirmed by a vote of 50-45, largely along party lines.

Trump praised her appointment on his social media platform, Truth Social, calling her "incredibly well-qualified" and "a powerful crusader for victims of crime."

In her statement on X, Pirro said she was “blessed” to be confirmed and pledged to be a “real crime fighter” in the US capital.

Pirro has been serving as the interim US attorney for DC since May, after Trump nominated her to replace his original pick, conservative activist Ed Martin. Martin’s nomination was withdrawn following a controversy over his dismissal of several prosecutors handling criminal cases related to the Jan. 6, 2021 attack on the US Capitol.