The US State Department on Friday began laying off more than 1,300 diplomats and other employees, as part of an effort by President Donald Trump's administration to slash government spending and shrink the federal workforce.
The so-called reductions in force, or RIFs, include 1,107 civil servants and 246 foreign service employees based in the US, according to a State Department notice seen by The National.
Including voluntary departures and retirements, nearly 3,000 members of the workforce would leave the department as part of the move.
“The objective from the start was clear: focus resources on policy priority and eliminate redundant functions, empowering our people while increasing accountability,” Deputy Secretary of State Michael Rigas wrote in an email to State Department employees.
Mr Rigas said it was the “largest reorganisation” effort in the State Department in decades. Until the layoffs, the department had a domestic workforce of about 18,000 people.
A State Department employee who did not wish to be named said farewell emails were pouring in on Friday.
Diplomats-in-residence, many of them senior officers, have been let go, in addition to members of the Foreign Service Institute, the employee added.
The employee said they understood that staff at the Office of Global Women's Issues had been laid off as well.
The layoffs come after the Supreme Court this week ruled in favour of the Trump administration's plans for the mass firings of federal workers.
Mr Trump, who took office in January, campaigned on a promise to reduce the size of the federal government, a long-standing Republican goal.
The Republican Party as a whole sees a large federal government as a wasteful and bloated bureaucracy. Some far-right Republicans also accuse federal employees of being part of a “deep state” conspiracy working to undermine Mr Trump's agenda.
Representative Gregory Meeks, ranking member of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, blasted the State Department layoffs.
“The mass firing of civil service and foreign service employees at the State Department is a reckless and unilateral disarmament of our national security toolbox,” he said in a statement. “Republicans claim to put ‘America First,’ but gutting our diplomatic and development corps does the opposite.”
Soon after taking office, Mr Trump enlisted the help of billionaire Elon Musk, his ally at the time, to slash federal jobs with the aim of reducing spending and eradicating alleged corruption in the federal government.
Under the Department of Government Efficiency, or Doge, thousands of government projects and jobs were cut.
The US Agency for International Development was dissolved and folded into the State Department after the vast majority of its projects were cancelled.
THE SPECS
Engine: AMG-enhanced 3.0L inline-6 turbo with EQ Boost and electric auxiliary compressor
Transmission: nine-speed automatic
Power: 429hp
Torque: 520Nm
Price: Dh360,200 (starting)
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
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Timeline
2012-2015
The company offers payments/bribes to win key contracts in the Middle East
May 2017
The UK SFO officially opens investigation into Petrofac’s use of agents, corruption, and potential bribery to secure contracts
September 2021
Petrofac pleads guilty to seven counts of failing to prevent bribery under the UK Bribery Act
October 2021
Court fines Petrofac £77 million for bribery. Former executive receives a two-year suspended sentence
December 2024
Petrofac enters into comprehensive restructuring to strengthen the financial position of the group
May 2025
The High Court of England and Wales approves the company’s restructuring plan
July 2025
The Court of Appeal issues a judgment challenging parts of the restructuring plan
August 2025
Petrofac issues a business update to execute the restructuring and confirms it will appeal the Court of Appeal decision
October 2025
Petrofac loses a major TenneT offshore wind contract worth €13 billion. Holding company files for administration in the UK. Petrofac delisted from the London Stock Exchange
November 2025
180 Petrofac employees laid off in the UAE
The biog
Hobby: Playing piano and drawing patterns
Best book: Awaken the Giant Within by Tony Robbins
Food of choice: Sushi
Favourite colour: Orange
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Wicked: For Good
Director: Jon M Chu
Starring: Ariana Grande, Cynthia Erivo, Jonathan Bailey, Jeff Goldblum, Michelle Yeoh, Ethan Slater
Rating: 4/5
RIVER%20SPIRIT
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Yemen's Bahais and the charges they often face
The Baha'i faith was made known in Yemen in the 19th century, first introduced by an Iranian man named Ali Muhammad Al Shirazi, considered the Herald of the Baha'i faith in 1844.
The Baha'i faith has had a growing number of followers in recent years despite persecution in Yemen and Iran.
Today, some 2,000 Baha'is reside in Yemen, according to Insaf.
"The 24 defendants represented by the House of Justice, which has intelligence outfits from the uS and the UK working to carry out an espionage scheme in Yemen under the guise of religion.. aimed to impant and found the Bahai sect on Yemeni soil by bringing foreign Bahais from abroad and homing them in Yemen," the charge sheet said.
Baha'Ullah, the founder of the Bahai faith, was exiled by the Ottoman Empire in 1868 from Iran to what is now Israel. Now, the Bahai faith's highest governing body, known as the Universal House of Justice, is based in the Israeli city of Haifa, which the Bahais turn towards during prayer.
The Houthis cite this as collective "evidence" of Bahai "links" to Israel - which the Houthis consider their enemy.
Company Profile
Name: Thndr
Started: 2019
Co-founders: Ahmad Hammouda and Seif Amr
Sector: FinTech
Headquarters: Egypt
UAE base: Hub71, Abu Dhabi
Current number of staff: More than 150
Funds raised: $22 million
THE BIO
Ambition: To create awareness among young about people with disabilities and make the world a more inclusive place
Job Title: Human resources administrator, Expo 2020 Dubai
First jobs: Co-ordinator with Magrudy Enterprises; HR coordinator at Jumeirah Group
Entrepreneur: Started his own graphic design business
Favourite singer: Avril Lavigne
Favourite travel destination: Germany and Saudi Arabia
Family: Six sisters
