Joseph Kent, Director of the United States’ National Counterterrorism Center (NCTC), resigned from his post on Tuesday in protest against the ongoing war with Iran, arguing that Tehran did not pose an imminent threat to the United States and sharply criticising the justification for military action.
In his resignation letter to US President Donald Trump, Kent described the war with Iran as unjustified, contending that the United States entered the war mainly because of pressure from Israel and influential pro‑Israeli lobby in America rather than any clear, direct threats to national security.
Kent wrote that he “cannot in good conscience support the ongoing war in Iran,” lamenting in his letter that the current conflict departs from what he saw as Trump’s earlier “America First” foreign policy and drawing comparisons to previous US military engagements in the Middle East.
“After much reflection, I have decided to resign from my position as Director of the National Counterterrorism Center, effective today. 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,” his letter read.
It further added, “I support the values and the foreign policies that you campaigned on in 2016, 2020, and 2024, which you enacted in your first term. Until June of 2025, you understood that the wars in the Middle East were a trap that robbed America of the precious lives of our patriots and depleted the wealth and prosperity of our nation.”
Kent’s resignation represents an unusual and prominent exit from the US counterterrorism leadership at a moment when there is intense controversy over the aims and justification for the Iran conflict.
His letter also mentioned, “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. This echo chamber was used to deceive you into believing that Iran posed an imminent threat to the United States and that should you strike now, there was a clear path to a swift victory. This was a lie and is the same tactic the Israelis used to draw us into the disastrous Iraq war that cost our nation the lives of thousands of our best men and women. We cannot make this mistake again.”
This development comes amid the intensifying conflict that began on February 28 with the killing of 86-year-old Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei in joint US and Israeli military strikes.
In retaliation, Iran targeted US and Israeli assets across several Gulf countries and Israel, disrupting key waterways and impacting international energy markets and global economic stability.
As a result, Iran has effectively closed the Strait of Hormuz, a vital route for global energy transit.
Following Ali Khamenei’s death, his son, Mojtaba Khamenei, was appointed as the new Supreme Leader of the Islamic Republic.
In his letter, Kent said that, as an 11-time combat veteran and a Gold Star husband who lost his wife Shannon in a war he described as orchestrated by Israel, he could not support sending the next generation to fight in a conflict that offers no benefit to the American people and does not justify the loss of US lives.
A highly decorated military veteran with extensive combat experience and a strong background in national security, Kent’s resignation highlights internal dissent over the Trump administration’s strategic approach amid the ongoing conflict.
