By Daphne Psaledakis and Humeyra Pamuk

WASHINGTON (Reuters) -President Donald Trump's administration has scaled back a key U.S. government report on human rights worldwide, dramatically softening criticism of some countries that have been strong partners of the Republican president, such as El Salvador and Israel, which rights groups say have extensive records of abuses.

Instead, the U.S. State Department in its widely anticipated 2024 Human Rights Report sounded an alarm about the erosion of freedom of speech in Europe and ramped up criticism of Brazil and South Africa, countries Washington has clashed with over a host of issues.

Any criticism of governments over their treatment of LGBTQI rights, which appeared in Biden administration editions of the report,appeared to have been largely omitted. Washington referred to Russia's invasion of Ukraine mainly as the "Russia-Ukraine war."

The report's section on Israel was much shorter than last year's editionand contained no mention of the severe humanitarian crisis or death toll in Gaza. Some61,000 people have died, according to the Gaza Health Ministry, as a result of Israel's military operations in response to an attack by Palestinian militant group Hamas in October 2023.

The report wasdelayed for months as Trump appointees altered an earlier State Department draft dramatically to bring it in line with "America First" values,........

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