Former US Counterterrorism Official Reveals He Wasn't Allowed To Share Concerns Over Iran War With Trump

Last Updated:March 19, 2026, 06:43 IST

Kent said that the President Trump relied on a small circle of advisers in making his decision to strike Iran.

Joe Kent, the former US Counterterrorism Director, who resigned over concerns regarding the Iran war last week, on Wednesday said that he and other senior officials with doubts about the airstrikes “were not allowed" to share them with President Donald Trump.

Kent said that the President relied on a small circle of advisers in making his decision to strike Iran and claimed that Israel forced US to participate in the war. Sharing his resignation post on X, Kent mentioned that there was no evidence that Iran posed an imminent threat to the United States.

“A good deal of key decision makers were not allowed to come and express their opinion to the President," Kent said while speaking on Tucker Carlson’s show. “There wasn’t a robust debate."

However, Kent declined to comment on who blocked his access to Trump when asked.

Kent’s comments offer an inside glimpse into Trump’s decision to strike Iran on February 28. It also suggested that there were concerns about the strikes within the administration.

Kent, who headed the National Counterterrorism Center, was in charge of an agency tasked with analysing and detecting terrorist threats. His work was overseen by Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard, who on Wednesday said that it was up to Trump — and Trump alone — to decide whether Iran posed a threat.

Gabbard, a veteran and former congresswoman from Hawaii, had earlier criticised the talks of military strikes in Iran.

Kent said no intelligence suggested that Iran was working to develop nuclear weapons, and that he believes Israel was able to force the US to act by promising to act first, potentially putting US interests in the region at risk. He said Israeli officials and US media pundits helped make the argument that Iran was a threat.

Kent said that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and other Israeli officials personally lobbied Trump, often with information that US officials couldn’t confirm.

“When we would hear what they were saying, it didn’t reflect intelligence channels," Kent said.

(With agency inputs)

News world Former US Counterterrorism Official Reveals He Wasn't Allowed To Share Concerns Over Iran War With Trump

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