State Department lays off over 1,300 employees under Trump administration plan

WASHINGTON (AP) — The U.S. State Department fired more than 1,300 employees Friday in line with a dramatic reorganization plan from the Trump administration that critics say will damage America's global leadership and efforts to counter threats abroad.

The department sent layoff notices to 1,107 civil servants and 246 foreign service officers with assignments in the United States, according to a senior department official who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss personnel matters.

Notices said positions were being “abolished” and the employees would lose access to State Department headquarters in Washington and their email and shared drives by 5 p.m., according to a copy obtained by The Associated Press.

As fired employees packed their belongings, dozens of former colleagues, ambassadors, members of Congress and others spent a warm, humid day protesting outside. Holding signs saying, “Thank you to America’s diplomats” and “We all deserve better,” they mourned the institutional loss from the cuts and highlighted the personal sacrifice of serving in the foreign service.

“We talk about people in uniform serving. But foreign service officers take an oath of office, just like military officers,” said Anne Bodine, who retired from the State Department in 2011 after serving in Iraq and Afghanistan. “This is not the way to treat people who served their country and who believe in ‘America First.'”

While lauded by President Donald Trump, Secretary of State Marco Rubio and their Republican allies as overdue and necessary to make the department leaner and more efficient, the cuts have been roundly criticized by current and former diplomats who say they will weaken U.S. influence and the ability to counter existing and emerging threats abroad.

Antony Blinken, who served as President Joe Biden's secretary of state, posted on X late Friday: “Thinking today of the men and women of the State Department — Foreign Service and Civil Service. Their dedication to serving the national interest and the American people is second to none.”

The Trump administration has pushed to reshape American diplomacy and worked aggressively to shrink the size of the federal government, including mass dismissals driven by the Department of Government Efficiency and moves to dismantle whole departments like the U.S. Agency for International Development and the Education Department.

USAID, the six-decade-old foreign assistance agency, was absorbed into the State Department last week after the administration dramatically slashed foreign aid funding.

Late Friday, the U.S. Institute of Peace’s 300 employees began receiving notices that they were being let go, marking the second time they have been terminated. USIP is an independent, nonprofit think tank funded by Congress.

A recent ruling by the Supreme Court cleared the way for the layoffs to start, while lawsuits challenging the legality of the cuts continue to play out. The department had advised staffers Thursday that it would be sending layoff notices to some of them soon.

In a May letter notifying Congress about the reorganization, the department said it had just over 18,700 U.S.-based employees and was looking to reduce the workforce by 18% through layoffs and voluntary departures, including deferred resignation programs.

“It’s not a consequence of trying to get rid of people. But if you close the bureau, you don’t need those positions,” Rubio told reporters Thursday during a visit to Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. “Understand that some of these are positions that are being eliminated, not people.”

Foreign service officers affected will be placed immediately on administrative leave for 120 days, after which they will formally lose their jobs, according to an internal notice obtained by the AP. For most civil servants, the separation period is 60 days, it said.

Inside and just outside the State Department, employees spent over an hour applauding their departing colleagues, who got more support -- and sometimes hugs -- from protesters and others gathered across the street.

As speakers took to a bullhorn, people behind them held signs in the shape of gravestones that said “democracy,” “human rights” and “diplomacy.”

"It’s just heartbreaking to stand outside these doors right now and see people coming out in tears, because all they wanted to do was serve this country,” said Sen. Andy Kim, a New Jersey Democrat who worked as a civilian adviser for the State Department in Afghanistan during the Obama administration.

Robert Blake, who served as a U.S. ambassador under the George W. Bush and Obama administrations, said he came to support his peers at a very “unjust time.”

“I have a lot of friends who served very loyally and with distinction and who are being fired for nothing to do with their performance,” Blake said.

Gordon Duguid, a 31-year veteran of the foreign service, said of the Trump administration: “They’re not looking for people who have the expertise ... they just want people who say, ‘OK, how high’” to jump.

“That’s a recipe for disaster,” he added.

The American Foreign Service Association, the union that represents U.S. diplomats, said it opposed the job cuts during “a moment of great global instability.”

“Losing more diplomatic expertise at this critical global moment is a catastrophic blow to our national interests," the AFSA said in a statement. “These layoffs are untethered from merit or mission.”

As the layoffs began, paper signs started going up around the State Department. “Colleagues, if you remain: resist fascism,” said one.

An employee who was among those laid off said she printed them about a week ago, when the Supreme Court cleared way for the reductions. The employee spoke to the AP on the condition of anonymity out of fear of retaliation.

She worked with about a dozen colleagues to put up the signs. They focused on bathrooms, where there are no security cameras, although others went in more public spaces.

“Nobody wants to feel like these guys can just get away with this,” she said.

The State Department is planning to eliminate some divisions tasked with oversight of America’s two-decade involvement in Afghanistan, including an office focused on resettling Afghan nationals who worked alongside the U.S. military.

Jessica Bradley Rushing, who worked at the Office of the Coordinator for Afghan Relocation Efforts, known as CARE, said she was shocked when she received another dismissal notice Friday after she had already been put on administrative leave in March.

“I spent the entire morning getting updates from my former colleagues at CARE, who were watching this carnage take place within the office,” she said, adding that every person on her team received a notice. “I never even anticipated that I could be at risk for that because I’m already on administrative leave.”

The State Department said the reorganization will affect more than 300 bureaus and offices, as it eliminates divisions it describes as doing unclear or overlapping work. It says Rubio believes “effective modern diplomacy requires streamlining this bloated bureaucracy.”

The letter to Congress was clear that the reorganization is also intended to eliminate programs — particularly those related to refugees and immigration, as well as human rights and democracy promotion — that the Trump administration believes have become ideologically driven in a way that is incompatible with its priorities and policies.

Lee reported from Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, and Amiri from New York. Chris Megerian and Gary Fields in Washington contributed.

Follow the AP's coverage of the U.S. Department of State at https://apnews.com/hub/us-department-of-state.

State Department employees applaud as their colleagues walk through the lobby of the State Department headquarters in the Harry S Truman Building, Friday, July 11, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein).

Fired State Department employees carry boxes out of the Harry S. Truman Building, the headquarters of the State Department, in Washington, Friday, July 11, 2025. (AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta)

State Department employees applaud as their colleagues walk through the lobby of the State Department headquarters in the Harry S Truman Building, Friday, July 11, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta)

A man hugs former Foreign Service employee Bob Gilchrist, of Washington, left, as he holds a sign reading "Thank You America's Diplomats" outside the State Department headquarters, Friday, July 11, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein).

Retired State Department employees and supporters rally outside the Harry S. Truman Building, the headquarters of the State Department, in Washington, Friday, July 11, 2025. (AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta)

A fired State Department employee, left, is greeted outside of the Harry S. Truman Building, the headquarters of the State Department, in Washington, Friday, July 11, 2025. (AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta)

State Department employees applaud as their colleagues walk through the lobby of the State Department headquarters in the Harry S Truman Building, Friday, July 11, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta)

Sen. Chris Van Hollen, D-Md., speaks during a rally outside the headquarters of the State Department, in Washington, Friday, July 11, 2025. (AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta)

Former Foreign Service employee Anne Bodine of Arlington, Va., demonstrates against potential layoffs at the State Department, Friday, July 11, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein).

State Department employees applaud as their colleagues walk through the lobby of the State Department headquarters in the Harry S. Truman Building, Friday, July 11, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein).

State Department employees cheer to recognize the service of their fired co-workers who are carrying boxes and their personal belongings out of the Harry S. Truman Building, the headquarters of the State Department, in Washington, Friday, July 11, 2025, as they , (AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta)

A woman reacts as she walks out of the State Department headquarters, Friday, July 11, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein).

A man hugs former Foreign Service employee Bob Gilchrist, of Washington, left, as he holds a sign reading "Thank You America's Diplomats" outside the State Department headquarters, Friday, July 11, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein).

The headquarters of the Department of State is seen, June 27, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein)

A sign is seen outside the headquarters of the Department of State, June 27, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein)

FILE - Federal workers and supporters rally outside of the State Department, June 27, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein, File)

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio gives a media briefing during the ASEAN Foreign Ministers' Meeting at the Convention Centre in Kuala Lumpur Friday, July 11, 2025. (Mandel Ngan/Pool Photo via AP)

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio gestures as he boards his flight before departing from Subang Air Base, on the outskirts of Kuala Lumpur, on Friday, July 11, 2025, after attending the 58th ASEAN Foreign Ministers' meeting. (Mandel Ngan/Pool Photo via AP)

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio gestures as he boards his flight before departing from Subang Air Base, on the outskirts of Kuala Lumpur, on Friday, July 11, 2025, after attending the 58th ASEAN Foreign Ministers' meeting. (Mandel Ngan/Pool Photo via AP)

FAIRFAX, Va. (AP) — A Virginia man who had a relationship with a Brazilian au pair is going to trial Monday in what prosecutors say was an elaborate double-murder scheme to frame another man in the stabbing of his wife.

Brendan Banfield is charged with aggravated murder in the February 2023 killings of Christine Banfield and Joseph Ryan at the Banfields' home in northern Virginia. He has pleaded not guilty in the case.

Banfield and Juliana Peres Magalhães, the family’s au pair, were with the wife and Ryan on the morning the victims were killed in the primary bedroom of the Banfield home, court records say. Authorities have said on that day, Banfield and Magalhães told officials they saw Ryan, a stranger, stabbing the wife after he entered the house. Then they each shot the intruder, Banfield and Magalhães said at the time.

Prosecutors have painted a different picture, arguing that Brendan Banfield and Magalhães lured Ryan to the house and staged it to look like he and the au pair shot a predator in defense. Officials have said Banfield and Magalhães had a romantic affair beginning the year before the killings.

Both the au pair and husband were arrested between 2023 and 2024 and initially handed murder charges in the case. In 2024, Magalhães pleaded guilty to a downgraded manslaughter charge after giving a statement to officials confirming parts of their theory.

In that statement, Magalhães said she and Brendan Banfield created an account in his wife’s name on a social media platform for people interested in sexual fetishes. There, Ryan connected with the account in Christine Banfield’s name, and the users made plans to meet on the morning of Feb. 24, 2023, for a sexual encounter that would involve a knife, authorities said based on the statement from Magalhães.

Prosecutor Eric Clingan said last year that the au pair's statement helped the state solidify its theory ahead of trial.

“With 12 different homicide detectives, there were 24 different theories,” Clingan said. “Now, one theory.”

Not all officials investigating the case have believed Banfield and Magalhães catfished Ryan.

Brendan Miller, a former digital forensic examiner with the Fairfax County Police Department, testified last year that he analyzed dozens of devices and concluded Christine Banfield had connected with Ryan herself through the social networking platform.

An evidence analysis team at the University of Alabama peer-reviewed and affirmed Miller’s digital forensic findings, according to evidence submitted to the court.

Miller was transferred out of the department’s digital forensics unit in late 2024, though a former Fairfax County commander testified the reassignment was not punitive or disciplinary.

John Carroll, Banfield's attorney, argued that Millers' transfer was directly tethered to the case. He also said in court that Fairfax County police reassigned the case’s lead detective after that man had pushed back on the top brass’ catfishing theory.

“It is a theory in search of facts rather than a series of facts supporting a theory,” Carroll said.

Banfield, whose daughter was at the house on the morning of the killings, is also charged with child abuse and felony child cruelty in connection with the case. He will also face those charges during the aggravated murder trial.

FILE - This image provided by the Fairfax County Police Department and taken on Oct. 13, 2023, was submitted as evidence in the murder case against Brendan Banfield shows a framed photo of Banfield and Juliana Peres Magalhães on his bedside table in Herndon, Va. (Fairfax County Police Department via AP, File)