Top US counter-terrorism official Joe Kent resigns over Iran war

• Joe Kent, the director of the National Counter-terrorism Center (NCTC) resigned to protest the US-Israeli war against Iran.

• Kent led the US counter-terrorism and counter-narcotics enterprise and served as the principal counter-terrorism advisor to President Donald Trump.

• Kent is the first senior US official to resign from the Trump administration to protest the war against Iran.

• In his resignation letter, Kent said Iran had posed no imminent threat to the United States.

• He added that it is clear we started this war due to pressure from Israel and its powerful American lobby.

• Kent, 45, had served in the US Army for 20 years, where he completed 11 combat deployments in the Middle East and other high-threat regions. 

• During his time in the Army, he served with the 75th Ranger Regiment, Army Special Forces and US Army Special Operations Command, and received numerous military commendations, including six bronze stars. 

• After retiring from the Army in 2018, he served as a paramilitary officer in the CIA’s Special Activities Center.

• Before entering President Trump’s administration, Kent ran two unsuccessful campaigns for Congress in Washington state.