Elon Musk called USAID a criminal organization that should “die.” Proponents say it’s a key arm of U.S. influence that, if destroyed, “cannot be easily rebuilt.”

The Trump administration over the weekend put on administrative leave dozens more staff at U.S. Agency for International Development, three sources familiar with the move said, as it moves to abolish the agency's independence and bring it under the control of the State Department.

The U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID)'s website has gone offline after President Donald Trump halted U.S. billions of dollars of foreign aid, although it is not clear whether the two are linked.