Hegseth fires Pentagon's top planner as Trump weighs Iran strikes
Lt Gen Brett Sylvia is out as the Joint Chiefs' strategy chief with no explanation, days before US midterms that could open the door to new strikes on Iran.
Washington — Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth has fired the Pentagon's top military planner, a US defence official said, even as President Donald Trump weighs renewed strikes on Iran in the eight-month-long war.
Army Lt Gen Brett Sylvia was removed as head of strategy, plans and policy on the Joint Chiefs of Staff — the post known as the "J5", whose staff generate and coordinate military plans with the chairman and the president. He is the second general ousted from that job under Mr Hegseth; his predecessor, Lt Gen Joseph McGee, was forced to retire last October, The Hindu reported.
The official, speaking anonymously to discuss sensitive personnel matters, said no reason was given and there is no immediate replacement. A Joint Staff spokesperson extended "deepest gratitude" to Gen Sylvia for 32 years of service. The dismissal was first reported by The Atlantic.
The timing is the story. Mr Trump has vowed to "finish the job" in Iran and says new strikes are an option after next Tuesday's midterm elections. US officials have told several West Asian allies to prepare for possible renewed action and Iranian retaliation, two diplomats briefed on the matter said, though Mr Trump has made no final decision. A third US aircraft carrier and thousands of additional troops are heading to the region. Wide World News has reported on Washington's warnings to allies and the deal-or-strikes deliberations.
Gen Sylvia is the latest of nearly two dozen generals, admirals and other senior leaders fired, forced to retire or otherwise pushed out under Mr Hegseth — most without public explanation, according to the South China Morning Post and The Hindu. Mr Hegseth has ordered cuts to top officer ranks doubled to 20% by January 2027, from roughly 800 flag and general officer posts, calling it "accountability and long overdue". Critics in Congress call it a "purge"; Senator Mark Kelly, a former Navy combat pilot, said it would "take a generation to recover".
The next test arrives fast: the November 3 midterms, after which Mr Trump has said strikes are an option — and the Pentagon has a vacant planning chair at the very moment war plans may be wanted.
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