Top US Counterterrorism Chief Joe Kent Resigns Over Trump’s War in Iran

2 min readUpdated: Mar 17, 2026 08:32 PM Joseph Kent, the head of the National Counterterrorism Center, resigned Tuesday, becoming the first and highest-ranking official in US President Donald Trump’s adminration to step down over the ongoing war in Iran.
In his resignation letter, shared on X, Kent said he could not support the conflict, arguing that Iran did not pose an immediate threat to the United States. He also claimed the war was initiated under pressure from Israel and its influential lob.
Legal experts have pointed out that under current laws, the US would need to establish an imminent threat before engaging in war. The White House and the Office of the Director of National Intelligence did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

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… pic.twitter.com/prtu86DpEr
— Joe Kent (@joekent16jan19) March 17, 2026
The sudden resignation reportedly caught intelligence officials off guard. Kent is known to be close to Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard, who has maintained a low profile since the conflict began.
Gabbard has not issued any public statements, appearing only during the dignified transfer of American soldiers killed earlier this month in the Iran conflict.
(With inputs from Reuters)
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