US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has removed the Pentagon’s intelligence agency chief following a White House criticism of a review assessing the impact of U.S. strikes on Iran. Lt Gen Jeffery Kruse is no longer leading the U.S. Defense Intelligence Agency (DIA), according to a Pentagon statement. Two other senior military commanders were also dismissed. No explanation has been provided for these decisions.
In June, President Donald Trump strongly criticized a leaked DIA report, which stated that attacks on Iran had only delayed its nuclear program by months. The White House labeled the assessment as “flat out wrong.” Trump claimed that Iran’s nuclear sites were “completely destroyed” and accused the media of undermining what he called one of the most successful military strikes in history. At the Nato summit, Hegseth described the report as based on “low intelligence” and noted an FBI investigation into the leak. Kruse’s removal was initially reported by the Washington Post.
The DIA, a part of the Pentagon, focuses on military intelligence to aid operations. It collects substantial technical intelligence but operates separately from agencies like the CIA. Hegseth has also removed the chief of the U.S. Naval reserves and the commander of Naval Special Warfare Command, as reported by an anonymous source to Reuters.
U.S. Senator Mark Warner expressed concern over Kruse’s dismissal, suggesting it reflects a pattern where Trump considers intelligence a loyalty test rather than a national safeguard. Trump has previously ousted officials whose views conflicted with his own. In July, Trump ordered the removal of Commissioner of Labor Statistics Erika McEntarfer following a report of slowed job growth. In April, Trump fired General Timothy Haugh as director of the National Security Agency, along with over a dozen White House national security council staff. Hegseth has similarly removed several military officials, including Air Force General C Q Brown in February, who was dismissed with five other admirals and generals.