US to Pull El Salvador Funds, Has 'Deep Concerns' Over Recent Dismissals 

SAN SALVADOR - The U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) is pulling aid from El Salvador's national police and a public information institute and will instead redirect the funding to civil society groups, the agency's head said in a statement Friday.

The statement cited concerns over votes earlier this month by legislative allies of President Nayib Bukele to oust the attorney general and top judges. USAID Administrator Samantha Power expressed "deep concerns" with the dismissals as well as "larger concerns about transparency and accountability" in the Central American country. The earmarked funds will now go to "promoting transparency, combating corruption and monitoring human rights" in concert with local civil society groups, the statement said, without specifying the amount of money in question.