By Alex Marquardt, Lauren Kent and Jennifer Hansler, CNN (CNN) — US Agency for International Development staff around the world will be placed on administrative leave Friday and ordered to return to the US, according to a directive issued Tuesday night. As of 11:59 p.m. ET Friday, “all USAID direct hire personnel will be placed on administrative leave globally, with the exception of designated personnel responsible for mission-critical functions, core leadership and specially designated programs,” said a statement posted on the USAID website, which is back online after going dark last week. The statement said it is preparing a plan for personnel posted outside the United States “under which the Agency would arrange and pay for return travel to the United States within 30 days” and terminate “contracts that are not determined to be essential.” As the name implies, a direct hire is a government official directly employed by the US government, as opposed to contractors, who make up a large part of the USAID workforce. Many of those contractors have already been furloughed or laid off. Essential personnel expected to continue working will be informed by Thursday afternoon. The statement on the website ends with: “Thank you for your service.” The directive comes as the Trump administration has begun dismantling the agency and frozen almost all foreign aid. A day earlier, Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced he would be acting administrator of USAID, confirming the de-facto takeover of the humanitarian agency by the State Department. In recent days, dozens of senior USAID officials have been placed on leave, thousands of contractors have been laid off, and employees were told this week not to report to the agency’s Washington headquarters. CNN reported earlier that staffers were receiving individual emails Tuesday informing them that they were being put on leave. Multiple officials shared with CNN the notice from the acting deputy administrator, Peter Marocco. “You will remain on administrative leave with pay until otherwise notified,” the notice states. “During the period that you are on administrative leave you are not to enter USAID premises, access USAID systems, or attempt to use your position or authority with USAID in any way without my prior permission or prior permission of a supervisor in your chain of command,” Marocco says in the letter. When a reporter told President Donald Trump on Tuesday that it sounded like he was going to “wind down” the agency, he laughed and said, “Sounds like it.” “Look at all the fraud that he’s found in this USAID,” the president said of Elon Musk, the tech billionaire leading the Department of Governmental Efficiency. “It has to be corrupt,” Trump added without evidence. Marocco’s Tuesday letter instructed employees to email a USAID official with their “personal contact information, including your phone number, email and mailing address,” so they can remain available during regular business hours. A USAID employee told CNN they emailed and got a bounceback, saying that person is also on leave. “People are hysterical. My friends are crying. We don’t know what’s going on,” said one USAID official put on leave. They noted that officials posted abroad may have children in school or spouses with jobs, and now that is “all uprooted.” “No access to any government system; can’t see emails. It’s like we’re criminals,” the official said. On Monday, thousands of personal services contractors and civil servants lost access to email and USAID systems overnight. The sudden chaos has left employees struggling to get any answers, officials said. Additionally, USAID headquarters and annex offices in the Washington, DC, area will remain closed the remainder of the week, according to an email sent to staff Tuesday and obtained by CNN. The offices closed include the headquarters in Washington; a second DC annex location; an office in Leesburg, Virginia; and one in Springfield, Virginia. “Agency personnel normally assigned to work at these USAID properties should telework this week,” the email said. There are some exceptions for personnel with essential on-site and building maintenance functions, the email said. The email noted employees are still “expected to remain available during regular business hours and operations.” Shortly after being sworn in last month, Trump issued a sweeping executive order pausing all foreign aid for 90 days, leading to widespread confusion, layoffs and program shutdowns. USAID was established in 1961 under President John F. Kennedy’s administration and is the US government’s humanitarian arm. It dispenses billions of dollars annually across the world in an effort to alleviate poverty, treat diseases, and respond to famines and natural disasters. Musk has led the Trump administration’s effort to weaken USAID, falsely calling it a “viper’s nest of radical-left marxists who hate America” and branding it a “criminal organization” that should “die.” The Trump administration’s actions have raised questions from Democrats over the legality of any wind-down of the agency that will likely have a dramatic consequence for global life-saving aid from the United States. This story and headline have been updated with additional developments. CNN’s Alejandra Jaramillo contributed to this report. The-CNN-Wire & © 2025 Cable News Network, Inc., a Warner Bros. Discovery Company. All rights reserved.

PORT AU PRINCE, Haiti, CMC – Gang violence in Haiti continues to have a devastating impact on the population, according to a new report from the UN office in the country (BINUH) on human rights violations recorded during the last quarter of 2024. The report, released on Tuesday, notes that at least 5,626 people have been killed and more than 2,213 injured in the past year, due to the armed gangs who control much of the capital and the country at large. BINUH said these figures reflect a sharp increase of over 1,000 fatalities compared to 2023, underscoring the unrelenting brutality gripping the nation. According to BINUH, the last quarter of 2024 saw an alarming rise in deadly gang-related attacks. At least 1,732 people were killed and 411 injured due to violence by armed groups, self-defence units and law enforcement operations. The report highlights three large-scale massacres that resulted in over 300 deaths, with the most severe attack occurring in the Wharf Jérémie neighbourhood of Port-au-Prince. Between December 6 and 11, at least 207 people were slaughtered by a gang led by Monel Felix, known as “Micanor,” who accused the mainly elderly victims of practicing voodoo and being responsible for the death of his child.The armed gang executed people in their homes and a local place of worship before burning or dismembering bodies to conceal evidence. No law enforcement intervention was reported during the five-day attack. Similar atrocities took place in Pont Sondé and Petite Rivière de l’Artibonite, where coordinated gang offensives left at least 170 people dead in early December. The murders sparked reprisals by self-defence groups, further intensifying the violence. The report documents more than 250 executions carried out by police in 2024, with two children among the victims. It said many individuals were executed after being detained, while others – including street vendors and motorcycle taxi drivers – were shot for failing to provide identification. The Public Prosecutor of Miragoâne was also cited for six extrajudicial executions, bringing the total killings by prosecutors to 42 in 2024. Despite calls for accountability, investigations into police abuses remain largely stalled.BINUH noted that no officers have undergone vetting since June 2023, reflecting a deep-seated lack of supervision. Haiti has also experienced a 150 per cent surge in kidnappings with gangs increasingly targeting children. The report raised alarm over widespread sexual violence, with at least 94 cases of rape and sexual exploitation documented in the last quarter alone. Women and girls remain particularly vulnerable in gang-controlled areas, where they are subjected to systemic abuse. UNICEF  has warned of a 70 per cent increase in child soldiers, with boys as young as 12 being used for kidnappings, armed confrontations and extortion. The report notes that despite the scale of the crisis, Haiti’s judicial system remains paralysed. While some efforts were made in late 2024 – including appointments to key judicial posts – progress on high-profile massacres and corruption cases remains slow. Prime Minister Alix Didier Fils-Aimé has ordered investigations into the Pont Sondé and Wharf Jérémie massacres, yet no arrests or judicial actions had been taken by the end of the year. The High Commissioner for Human Rights,  Volker Türk emphasised the critical need to restore the rule of law and called on the international community to ensure the full deployment of the Multinational Security Support mission (MSS). The UN has also urged regional governments to intensify inspections of arms shipments destined for Haiti, in line with Security Council resolutions. With over one million people displaced and a humanitarian catastrophe continue to unfold, urgent international intervention is seen as vital to stabilising the country.

18 athletes have now met the qualifying standards for this year’s CARIFTA Track and Field Championships set for April 19-21 in Trinidad and Tobago. Following this weekend’s February Classic at the Usain Bolt Sports Complex, Nathan Cumberbatch, Jazzair Best and Chloe Blackman qualified in the under-17 division. Best met the standard in the long jump while Blackman hit the target for the discus throw and Cumberbatch in the 100-metre event. Among the under-20 girls’, Lashay Wilkinson and Laila McIntyre secured their spots in the 3000 metres, Danya Skeete in the 800, while Aniya Nurse added the 200 metres to her list of events. Ariel Archer also clinched a qualifying time in the 400 metres while Zakaiya Hunte hit the high jump standard. Tarell Johonson-Rouse was the only under-20 boys to meet a qualifying standard in the 400 metres. CBC’s Anmar Goodridge-Boyce reports on the sprint events at the classic.