Breaking News: A top U.S. counterterrorism official resigned, publicly citing his opposition to the Iran war. “I cannot in good conscience support the ongoing war in Iran,” Joe Kent, the director of the National Counterterrorism Center, wrote in a social media post.

Joe Kent, one of the United States’ top counterterrorism officials, announced his resignation on Tuesday, citing his opposition to the Iran war and what he said was Israel’s influence over the Trump administration’s policies.

“I cannot in good conscience support the ongoing war in Iran,” Mr. Kent, the director of the National Counterterrorism Center, wrote in a social media post. “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.”

Mr. Kent is the highest-ranking Trump administration official to quit over the Iran war. His resignation bluntly exposes how the Iran war is expanding fissures in President Trump’s coalition. Mr. Kent is a close friend of Tucker Carlson, the Trump ally who has emerged as the sharpest critic of the war.

In a brief interview, Mr. Carlson praised Mr. Kent’s resignation.

“Joe is the bravest man I know, and he can’t be dismissed as a nut,” Mr. Carlson said. “He’s leaving a job that gave him access to highest-level relevant intelligence. The neocons will now try to destroy him for that. He understands that and did it anyway.”

Thumbnail of page 1
Read Joe Kent’s Resignation Letter
Joe Kent, the director of the National Counterterrorism Center, announced on Tuesday that he would resign immediately, citing his opposition to the Iran war.

Read Document
Mr. Kent has long had a penchant for conspiracy theories, claiming without evidence that intelligence officials had a hand in the violence around the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol. And some Republicans were quick to call out Mr. Kent’s remarks on Israel.