Counterterrorism center head resigns over Iran war
Counterterrorism center head resigns over Iran war
https://www.nextgov.com/people/2026/03/counterterrorism-center-head-resigns-over-iran-war/412170/
Publish Date: 2026-03-17 11:10:00
Source Domain: www.nextgov.com
The head of the National Counterterrorism Center resigned from his post Tuesday due to the ongoing joint U.S.-Israel war against Iran.
“I 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,” Joe Kent, the head of the center, wrote in a letter to President Donald Trump.
The National Counterterrorism Center is located in the Office of the Director of National Intelligence, which is led by Tulsi Gabbard.
The unprecedented voluntary departure from one of the top intelligence posts in the nation follows several members of the GOP themselves noting that the motivations of the war, which broke out Feb. 28, do not align with the “America First” policy that Trump ran on. Kent is the highest ranked official to resign over the Iran war.
“Early 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,” Kent said.
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.
“As 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,” Kent said.
He was confirmed this past July after Trump nominated him in February of 2025.
“I always thought he was weak on security, very weak on security,” Trump said Monday when asked about the letter. “It’s a good thing that he’s out.”
In an X post, White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said there are “many false claims” in Kent’s letter and…
