Washington, District of Columbia, United States — The director of the United States National Counterterrorism Center, Joe Kent, has resigned from his position while openly criticising the administration of United States President Donald Trump over the ongoing conflict with Iran.
In a letter shared publicly on his account on the social media platform X, Kent announced his decision to step down and called on the president to reconsider the policy that led to the conflict. He wrote directly to the president, urging him to change direction on the war.
Kent wrote, “reverse course”.
The National Counterterrorism Center is a key United States government agency responsible for analysing global terrorism threats and coordinating intelligence efforts across different national security institutions. As director, Kent oversaw the analysis and detection of potential terrorist threats worldwide. He reported to the United States Director of National Intelligence, Tulsi Gabbard, who supervises the country’s intelligence community.
Okay News reports that Kent argued in his resignation letter that Iran did not pose an immediate danger to the United States. He also claimed the decision to begin the conflict was influenced by outside pressure.
According to the letter, “Iran posed no imminent threat” to the US and the administration “started this war due to pressure from Israel and its powerful American lobby”.
Kent also accused influential figures of shaping the narrative that led to the conflict. In the letter, he said “high-ranking Israeli officials” and some United States journalists spread “misinformation” that affected the president’s decision making.
“This echo was used to deceive you into believing that Iran posted an imminent threat to the United States,” the letter continued. “This was a lie.”
Kent, 45, has a long background in United States national security operations. He previously served in the United States military’s special forces and later worked as a paramilitary officer with the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), the main foreign intelligence service of the United States government.
During his military career, Kent deployed overseas 11 times, including assignments with the United States Army Special Forces in Iraq. His public service was also shaped by personal tragedy. His wife, Shannon Kent, who served as a cryptologic technician in the United States Navy, was killed in a suicide bombing in Syria in 2019.
Kent referred to both his military service and his wife’s death in explaining why he could not support the continuation of the war. In the letter, he wrote that he “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.”
Before becoming head of the National Counterterrorism Center, Kent was also involved in politics. He twice ran unsuccessfully as a Republican candidate for the United States House of Representatives in Washington State.
His appointment as director in July 2025 was narrowly confirmed by the United States Senate after debate among lawmakers. Several members of the Democratic Party criticised his past links to extremist groups, including individuals connected to the Proud Boys, a far-right organisation in the United States.
During his Senate confirmation hearing, Kent also declined to retract previous claims that federal agents had played a role in the riots at the United States Capitol on Wednesday, January 6, 2021, and he repeated his view that Donald Trump won the 2020 United States presidential election.
The White House has not yet publicly responded to Kent’s resignation. The development comes at a sensitive moment in United States foreign policy as tensions related to the conflict with Iran continue to draw international attention.
Further details about the situation are expected as officials in Washington respond to Kent’s departure and his criticism of the administration’s war policy.
