Headline

USAID Staff To Work From Home As Musk Pushes To Shut Down Agency

Published

10 months ago

February 3, 2025

USAID headquarters in Washington will be closed on Monday, with employees normally assigned to the office now to work remotely.

In an internal email obtained by ABC News the message stated that employees normally assigned to the office will work remotely, except for those with essential on-site duties.

“Further guidance will be forthcoming,” the email said.

The closure follows comments from Elon Musk, head of the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), who said he was “in the process” of “shutting down” USAID.

Musk claimed President Trump supported his efforts.

Tensions are rising at the agency, with DOGE staff reportedly taking over offices and senior officials locked out of internal systems.

Employees are being placed on administrative leave, and USAID’s chief of staff resigned. Musk’s agency is asserting control over USAID, which manages foreign aid and international development programs.

On Friday night, a group identifying as State Department employees and DOGE representatives demanded access to USAID offices, even threatening to involve U.S. Marshals when initially denied. Security later allowed their entry.

Musk has been vocal about his stance on USAID, calling it “a criminal organization” on social media. This move has unsettled USAID staff, with one official telling ABC News,

“The warp-speed of this mafia-like takeover has shaken USAID staff to the core.”

Posters and flags were removed from the Ronald Reagan Building, and employees placed on leave had their ID badges and work computers seized.

DOGE spokeswoman Katie Miller denied any unauthorized access to classified material but confirmed the group gained control of several critical USAID systems, including financial management software Phoenix, which led to disruptions in payments for contractors.

Headline

12 Die, 30 Missing In Peru Landslide

Published

17 hours ago

December 1, 2025

Editor

At least 12 people, including three children, died in a landslide at a river port in central Peru on Monday, and 30 were reported missing, officials said.

The landslide submerged a boat with about 50 passengers on board, and another with none, as they were docked at the port of Iparia in the Amazon jungle region of Ucayali, according to a police report cited by the Andina news agency.

Six people were injured, it added, and a search and rescue operation was underway at the start of the Peruvian rainy season.

Without giving a toll, Peru’s COEN national emergency operations centre said on X that tragedy struck at dawn due to “erosion” of the bank of the Ucayali river.

It said the navy has been called in to help.

AFP

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Nigeria Grants Asylum To Guinea-Bissau Opposition Candidate

Published

17 hours ago

December 1, 2025

Editor

The Nigerian embassy in Guinea-Bissau has granted asylum to Fernando Dias da Costa, the country’s opposition presidential candidate, following alleged threats to his life after last week’s military coup, The Cable Reports.

The coup was announced by military officers on Wednesday, just days after Guinea-Bissau’s presidential election in which both incumbent President Umaro Embaló and his main challenger, da Costa, claimed victory before official results were released.

Nigeria condemned the takeover and urged an immediate return to constitutional order.

In a letter to the President of the Economic Community of West African States Commission, Omar Touray, dated November 30, the Foreign Affairs Minister, Yusuf Tuggar, said President Bola Tinubu had approved asylum and protection for da Costa inside the Nigerian embassy in Bissau.

Tuggar wrote that the decision was made “in response to threats made against da Costa’s life.”

“In this regard, it would be appreciated if you would kindly mandate the ECOWAS Stabilisation Support Mission in Guinea-Bissau to provide him protection and security while in the premises of the Nigerian embassy,” the letter stated.

The foreign affairs minister’s Special Assistant on Media and Communications Strategy, Alkasim Abdulkadir, confirmed the letter’s authenticity to The Cable on Monday.

He said, “The decision of the Federal Government of Nigeria to grant asylum and provide protection to Fernando Dia Da Costa falls squarely within Nigeria’s sovereign responsibility and longstanding commitment to regional peace, stability, and democratic governance.”

He added that Nigeria acted “in the broader interest of de-escalation,” saying the government had exercised its discretion “to prevent further deterioration of tensions and to promote social cohesion in Guinea-Bissau and the wider West African sub-region.”

According to Abdulkadir, the intervention aligns with ECOWAS principles and reflects Nigeria’s role as a stabilising force in West Africa.

Following the coup, ECOWAS held an emergency virtual summit of heads of state and subsequently suspended Guinea-Bissau from the regional bloc until constitutional order is restored.

Headline

Trump To Attend FIFA World Cup Finals Draw On Friday

Published

17 hours ago

December 1, 2025

Editor

The White House on Monday confirmed US President Donald Trump would attend the draw for the FIFA World Cup finals in Washington later this week.

The United States will co-host the 2026 tournament alongside Canada and Mexico.

“On Friday, President Trump will attend the FIFA World Cup final draw at the Kennedy Centre,” White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt told reporters.

Trump has made the World Cup a centrepiece event of both his second presidency and the 250th anniversary of US independence next year.

But the giant sporting extravaganza has not escaped the political turmoil caused by Trump’s hardline stance on a host of issues.

Trump, a Republican, has raised the possibility of moving games from some US host cities amid a crackdown on what he says is crime and illegal migration in some Democratic-run areas.

AFP