Former USAID workers given brief access to retrieve belongings

U.S. Agency for International Development workers who have been fired or placed on leave as part of the Trump administration's dismantling of the agency began paying mournful final visits to their abruptly closed Washington headquarters on Thursday, under the administration's 15-minute windows to clear out their offices while escorted by federal officers.

Some staffers wept as they carried out grocery bags and suitcases with what was left from their life's work. Supporters clapped and cheered outside or drove by tapping their car horns to bolster their spirits.

USAID has been one of the biggest targets of a broad campaign by President Donald Trump and the Department of Government Efficiency, a project of Trump adviser Elon Musk, to slash the size of the federal government. The actions at USAID leave only a small fraction of its employees on the job.