{"id":7793,"date":"2026-03-23T13:32:32","date_gmt":"2026-03-23T13:32:32","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sawahsolutions.com\/range\/us-counterterrorism-chief-resigns-over-iran-war\/"},"modified":"2026-03-23T13:32:32","modified_gmt":"2026-03-23T13:32:32","slug":"us-counterterrorism-chief-resigns-over-iran-war","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sawahsolutions.com\/range\/us-counterterrorism-chief-resigns-over-iran-war\/","title":{"rendered":"US counterterrorism chief resigns over Iran war"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Updated: 5:01\u00a0p.m. Eastern.<\/em><\/p>\n

The head of the National Counterterrorism Center resigned from his post Tuesday\u00a0over the U.S.-Israel war on Iran.<\/p>\n

\u201cI cannot in good conscience support the ongoing war in Iran. Iran posed no imminent threat to our nation, and it is clear that we started this war due to pressure from Israel and its powerful American lobby,\u201d Joe Kent, the head of the center, wrote in a letter to President Donald Trump.<\/p>\n

The National Counterterrorism Center is part of the Office of the Director of National Intelligence, which is led by Tulsi Gabbard.<\/p>\n

Kent, who is the highest-ranked official to resign over the attack on Iran, echoed statements by several GOP\u00a0lawmakers\u00a0that the nearly 3-week-old war\u00a0does not align with Trump’s\u00a0\u201cAmerica First\u201d campaign promises.<\/p>\n

\u201cEarly in this administration, high-ranking Israeli officials and influential members of the American media deployed a misinformation campaign that wholly undermined your America First platform and sowed pro-war sentiments to encourage a war with Iran,\u201d Kent said.<\/p>\n

Kent is a U.S. special forces and CIA veteran. His late wife, Shannon Kent, was a Navy cryptologic technician killed in a 2019 suicide bombing in Syria.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cAs a veteran who deployed to combat 11 times and as a Gold Star husband who lost my beloved wife Shannon in a war manufactured by Israel, I cannot support sending the next generation off to fight and die in a war that serves no benefit to the American people nor justifies the cost of American lives,\u201d Kent said.<\/p>\n

Trump nominated Kent for the post in February 2025, and he was confirmed five months later.<\/p>\n

\u201cI always thought he was weak on security, very weak on security,\u201d Trump said Monday when asked about the letter. \u201cIt\u2019s a good thing that he\u2019s out.\u201d<\/p>\n

In an X post, White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said there are \u201cmany false claims\u201d in Kent\u2019s letter and Iran is the \u201cworld\u2019s leading state sponsor of terrorism.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThe Iranian regime is evil,\u201d she said. \u201cIt proudly killed Americans, waged war against our country, and openly threatened us all the way up to the launch of Operation Epic Fury.\u201d<\/p>\n

A spokesperson for the Office of the Director of National Intelligence flagged a social media post from Gabbard, which said Trump \u201cis responsible for determining what is and is not an imminent threat, and whether or not to take action he deems necessary to protect the safety and security of our troops, the American people and our country.”<\/p>\n

\u201cAfter carefully reviewing all the information before him, President Trump concluded that the terrorist Islamist regime in Iran posed an imminent threat and he took action based on that conclusion,\u201d Gabbard added. The statement does not make any mention of Kent.<\/p>\n

Gabbard is expected to testify with other top national-security officials before the Senate Intelligence Committee on Wednesday. She has campaigned against U.S. intervention overseas, but has not made public statements about the most recent Iran conflict.<\/p>\n

Kent has been a promoter of far-right conspiracy theories, and has referred to participants in the Jan. 6, 2021, Capitol riot as \u201cpolitical prisoners.\u201d He also reportedly ordered intelligence analysts to redo a Venezuela-related assessment so that it couldn\u2019t be \u201cused against\u201d President Trump.<\/p>\n

\u201cJoe Kent\u2019s record is deeply troubling, and in my view he never should have been confirmed to lead the National Counterterrorism Center,\u201d Sen. Mark Warner, D-Va., vice chairman of the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence, said in a statement. \u201cI strongly disagree with many of the positions he has espoused over the years, particularly those that risk politicizing our intelligence community. But on this point, he is right: there was no credible evidence of an imminent threat from Iran that would justify rushing the United States into another war of choice in the Middle East.\u201d<\/p>\n

Other lawmakers raised questions about Kent\u2019s frequent mentions of Israel in his letter.<\/p>\n

\u201cJoe Kent resigning and immediately pivoting to blaming Israel for everything is as predictable as it is unserious,\u201d Rep. Josh Gotteheimer, D-N.J., who sits on the House Intelligence Committee, said in an X post. \u201cScapegoating Israel isn\u2019t just a tired antisemitic trope \u2013 it\u2019s anti-American. This is a guy with ties to white supremacists and has \u2018PANZER\u2019 tattooed on his arm, referring to a Nazi tank infamously used in crimes against Jews.\u201d<\/p>\n

Editor’s note: This article has been updated to note that Joe Kent resigned on Tuesday.<\/em>\n\n<\/svg><\/p>\n<\/div>\n