Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has fired Army Lt. Gen. Brett Sylvia, the Pentagon’s top military planner, amid allegations that Sylvia leaked classified information to reporters.
Sylvia was abruptly removed this week as director of strategy, plans and policy on the Joint Staff, an influential position that coordinates military planning between Pentagon leadership, the Joint Chiefs and the White House.
His dismissal leaves the office without an announced replacement as President Donald Trump weighs renewed military strikes against Iran following next week’s midterm elections. It also marks a significant escalation in the Hegseth team’s probes into leaks, which have subjected dozens of military officers and civilian officials to polygraph examinations.
A senior Pentagon official said Thursday in a statement that Sylvia had failed three polygraph exams concerning the disclosure of classified information about the Iran war and Russia’s war in Ukraine. The allegations could not be independently verified.
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“The extent of the leaking became so critical that Secretary Hegseth took immediate action and fired Sylvia in order to protect national security,” the official said. “Urgent action was needed and could not wait another second.”
The official accused Sylvia of meeting journalists outside the Pentagon to disclose classified information, circumventing new restrictions requiring reporters to be escorted while inside the building.
The investigation remains ongoing, the official said, and it has been referred to the Justice Department for further action.
In a separate statement, the Pentagon’s chief spokesperson, Sean Parnell, said the personnel action followed an extensive probe by the Air Force Office of Special Investigations. He said it was among multiple matters referred to the Justice Department for potential further legal action.
“The Department of War has zero tolerance for the intentional, unauthorized disclosure of classified information,” Parnell said. “Anyone who compromises sensitive national security information puts the lives of our Warriors at risk and undermines every military operation that keeps our country safe.”
Parnell said no further details would be provided, citing the need to protect the integrity of the investigation.
“We vowed to find you, and we meant it,” he said.
As director of the Joint Staff’s strategy, plans and policy directorate, known as the J5, Sylvia occupied an influential decision-making role responsible for developing military strategy and policy recommendations for the chair of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.
The directorate works closely with combatant commanders, civilian Pentagon officials and the National Security Council to coordinate military planning and policy.
The Pentagon official emphasized that Sylvia was not a central planner for the Iran war, saying the responsibility rests with U.S. Central Command and its chief, Adm. Brad Cooper.
The Pentagon launched a broad investigation into unauthorized disclosures after reports revealed sensitive details about the depletion of munitions stockpiles during the Iran war.
The New York Times reported in September that about 50 Joint Staff personnel underwent polygraph exams in August as investigators sought to identify the source of leaks about shortages in U.S. munitions stockpiles. That followed Hegseth’s July announcement of a joint Pentagon-Justice Department task force to probe leaks of sensitive information.
The Pentagon did not immediately respond to questions about the extent of the leak probes and whether any other officials face disciplinary action.
Before joining the Joint Staff, Sylvia commanded the Army’s 101st Airborne Division at Fort Campbell, Kentucky. He also previously served as the J5’s vice director.
Sylvia retired from the Army after being removed from the director position, which he had held for 11 months.
He is the second general forced out of the strategic planning position under Hegseth. His predecessor, Lt. Gen. Joseph McGee, was pushed into retirement last October.
Sylvia’s firing comes amid a broader shake-up of the military’s senior leadership under Hegseth.
In September, Hegseth announced that the Pentagon was cutting its senior ranks by 20%, saying roughly 10% of generals and admirals had already been let go and another 10%of general officer positions were eliminated.
“Now the media calls that a purge. I call it accountability and long overdue, and frankly, the bare minimum,” Hegseth said during a speech last month at Marine Corps Base Quantico, in Virginia.
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