“Iran posed no imminent threat”: US counterterror chief resigns over West Asia conflict

In his resignation letter to US President Donald Trump, Joseph Kent described the conflict as unjustified. PIC/AFP

Joseph Kent, Director of the United States' National Counterterrorism Center (NCTC), resigned on Tuesday, citing his opposition to the ongoing war with Iran. Kent asserted that Tehran posed "no imminent threat" to the US and sharply criticised the rationale for military action.

In his resignation letter to US President Donald Trump, Kent described the conflict as unjustified, claiming Washington entered the war primarily due to pressure from Israel and its influential American lobby rather than any direct threat to national security.

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"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," Kent wrote.

He added, "I support the values and the foreign policies that you campaigned on in 2016, 2020, and 2024… Until June 2025, you understood that the wars in the Middle East were a trap that robbed America of precious lives and depleted the nation's wealth and prosperity."

Kent accused high-ranking Israeli officials and parts of the American media of orchestrating a pro-war misinformation campaign that misled the administration into believing Iran posed an imminent threat - a tactic he compared to the build-up to the Iraq war.

This resignation comes amid escalating conflict that began on February 28 with the killing of 86-year-old Iran Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei in joint US-Israel military strikes. In retaliation, Iran targeted Israeli and US assets across Gulf countries, disrupting global energy routes, including the strategic Strait of Hormuz. Mojtaba Khamenei has since been appointed as Iran's new Supreme Leader.

A decorated military veteran with multiple combat deployments, Kent also cited personal loss in his decision. "As a veteran who deployed 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," he wrote.

Kent's resignation is a rare high-profile departure from the US counterterrorism establishment, highlighting internal opposition to the administration's strategic decisions in the ongoing West Asia conflict.

(With ANI inputs)