USAID website shut down as Musk kills humanitarian aid agency

USAID.gov is unreachable and the foreign aid agency is targeted for termination.
By
Chase DiBenedetto
 on 
The USAID building.
USAID.gov is unreachable. Credit: Jason C. Andrew/Bloomberg via Getty Images

As DOGE head Elon Musk works to shut down the U.S. Agency for International Development, USAID's official website has gone dark.

Following Musk's threats to kill the office in charge of distributing foreign aid — including humanitarian allotments — Musk officially announced on Monday that President Trump had signed off on his so-called cost-cutting measures involving the agency, immediately shutting down the office and reportedly instructing security officers to stop federal employees from entering the premises.

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Not long before USAID's end, and in what appears to be the new strategy of the Trump administration, the agency's website was pulled. It now serves visitors with a notice that the server is unable to load. At the time, government employees and Democratic lawmakers expressed concern, as individuals were redirected to a State Department webpage merely summarizing USAID's work.

Previously, the administration pulled websites for the shelved Office for Gun Violence Prevention and multiple pages making referencing to LGBTQ (specifically transgender) resources and Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) programs.

A screenshot of a Google Chrome browser saying "The site can't be reached" for USAID.gov
Credit: Screenshot
Chase sits in front of a green framed window, wearing a cheetah print shirt and looking to her right. On the window's glass pane reads "Ricas's Tostadas" in red lettering.
Chase DiBenedetto
Social Good Reporter

Chase joined Mashable's Social Good team in 2020, covering online stories about digital activism, climate justice, accessibility, and media representation. Her work also touches on how these conversations manifest in politics, popular culture, and fandom. Sometimes she's very funny.


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