A senior official at the US Agency for International Development (USAID) has asked its employees to destroy internal documents.The latest agency directive comes amid concerns over handling of sensitive records under US President Donald Trump's administration amid its efforts to cut down assistance activities overseas, The Washington Post reported.What's the order?Erica Carr, USAID’s acting Executive Secretary, ordered the remaining staff of the agency to convene at its former headquarters in Washington on Tuesday as part of the “all day” effort to destroy documents stored at the premises, Politico reported. The email sent by Carr marked for destruction sensitive documents, which includes contents related to “classified safes and personnel documents”.“Shred as many documents first, and reserve the burn bags for when the shredder becomes unavailable or needs a break,” the news outlet quoted the email as saying.The burn bags will be earmarked with words like “SECRET” and “USAID/B/IO/” -- USAID's shorthand for 'bureau or independent office'.As per The Washington Post, the directive to shred or burn documents, including the ones related to agency personnel, has triggered an alarm on Capitol Hill, with lawmakers reminding Trump's administration about the obligation to comply with laws that prohibit such things.Also Read : Pokémon Go developer Niantic sells video game division to Saudi group Scopely for $3.5 billionWhy do USAID’s actions matter?The latest director comes after a series of actions by Trump's administration against USAID ever since he became the 47th President of the US in January this year.Earlier, the Trump-led administration cancelled most of the agency's contracts, terminated over 1,600 positions at USAID and decided to put the majority of its 10,000-strong workforce on administrative leave.The world's richest person, Elon Musk, who is a senior advisor to Trump along with other senior officials had earlier described the agency as a “criminal organisation,” which needs to be scrapped.USAID matter in courtGovernment employee unions have moved to court against the latest order and filed a motion in Washington DC federal court demanding to block the move.Citing Carr's email, the unions said that the order suggests a rapid destruction of agency records on a large scale, Reuters reported.The case has been filed by the American Federation of Government Employees as well as the American Foreign Service Association, which represents government employees. They are joined by Oxfam America. Altogether, they have alleged that the US President overstepped his authority to shutter the independent agency by firing or putting on leave its employees.White House denies chargeAmid widespread criticism, White House Deputy Press Secretary Anna Kelly called the reports as fake news hysteria on X and claimed that these documents were old, mostly courtesy content (content from other agencies), while originals continue to exist on classified computer systems.Also Read : US senator Jeanne Shaheen will not seek re-election in 2026: Here's how it affects the DemocratsFAQs1. What did the court say in the matter?US District Judge Carl Nichols has asked both sides to submit their status report. The last date was Wednesday morning.2. How many people were working at USAID earlier?The agency earlier used to manage an annual budget of $40 billion and had over 10,000 staff worldwide.