A senior United States counterterrorism official has resigned in protest against the ongoing conflict involving the US and Israel and Iran, arguing that Tehran posed no immediate threat to American security.
Joseph Kent, director of the National Counterterrorism Center (NCTC), stepped down on Tuesday, becoming the first senior official in the administration of Donald Trump to resign over the war.
In a resignation letter addressed to the president, Kent said he could not support the conflict.
“I cannot in good conscience support the ongoing war in Iran,” he wrote, adding that the Islamic Republic did not pose an imminent threat to the United States.
Kent, a former Green Beret who served multiple combat tours, argued that the war was driven by external pressure rather than direct national security concerns. He claimed that influential actors had promoted a narrative that led to military escalation.
The 45-year-old official also referenced his personal experience, noting that he is a Gold Star spouse. His wife, Shannon Kent, a US service member, was killed in a suicide bombing in Syria in 2019.
“As a veteran who deployed to combat 11 times and as a Gold Star husband… I cannot support sending the next generation off to fight and die in a war that serves no benefit to the American people,” he said.
Kent served under Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard, overseeing efforts to analyse and coordinate the country’s response to terrorism threats and acting as a principal adviser to the president on counterterrorism matters.
In his letter, which he also shared publicly, Kent criticised what he described as a misinformation campaign that he believes influenced US policy and encouraged military action.
Before his appointment to the NCTC, Kent served in the US Army and later worked as a paramilitary officer for the Central Intelligence Agency.
He also previously ran as a Republican candidate for Congress in Washington state in 2022 and 2024, with endorsement from Trump, but was unsuccessful.
Kent’s resignation underscores growing divisions within US leadership over the conflict and raises fresh questions about the rationale behind Washington’s involvement.