US President Donald Trump said it was a “good thing” that Joseph Kent, head of the National Counterterrorism Centre, had resigned, after Kent claimed that Iran was not a threat. Speaking at a White House press briefing, Trump said, “I read his statement. I always thought he was a nice guy, but he was always weak on security.”
"When I read his statement, I realised it’s a good thing he is out because he said Iran was not a threat. Iran is a threat to every country," he added.
Joseph Kent, the head of the United States’ National Counterterrorism Center, resigned on Tuesday over the ongoing US-Israel war in Iran. In his resignation letter, Kent said that Iran posed no “imminent threat” to the United States, and suggested that Israeli pressure had influenced President Donald Trump’s decision to launch the war.
"After much reflection, I have decided to resign from my position as Director of the National Counterterrorism Center, effective today," he wrote in a post on X, announcing his resignation.
'Iran posed no threat to US'
He further added that his decision to step down came on the basis that Iran posed to "imminent threat to the US" and it only went to war becasuse of pressure from Israel and its lobby in Washington.
"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," he wrote.
He further added that Donald Trump had recognised until June 2025 that wars in the Middle East drained American lives and resources. Kent also alleged that senior Israeli officials and influential figures in the US media promoted pro-war rhetoric through what he described as a “misinformation campaign”, aimed at pushing the United States towards a conflict with Iran.
As head of the National Counterterrorism Center, Kent led the agency responsible for analysing and identifying terrorist threats.
