FBI investigates Joe Kent for alleged classified information leak

The Federal Bureau of Investigation has launched a probe into the US Counter Terrorism Chief Joe Kent for allegedly leaking classified information. The enquiry predates resignation of Joe Kent on Tuesday, March 17, 2026. Joe Kent, who was reporting to the Director of National Intelligence, Tulsi Gabbard, said in his resignation that Iran posed “no imminent threat", as the Trump administration had justified for a preemptive attack.

The investigation was reportedly launched months ahead, first reported by Semafor. The allegations revolve around improperly sharing classified information, said four people aware of the matter to Semafor. Trump aides and allies immediately denounced Kent as a leaker just after he resigned.

Kent has served 11 combat deployments in his more than 20-year-long career in the Army Special Forces, before serving in Syria. His wife, Shannon Kent, was killed in a bombing in Syria, where she was working as a Navy cryptologist.

Also Read: Joe Kent's old tweet about Pro-Israel activist Laura Loomer goes viral as she calls for Tulsi Gabbard's resignation

The Director of National Intelligence, Tulsi Gabbard, pushed back against Kent, saying the President's Office can decide what constitutes an imminent threat. Her office acts to coordinate intelligence, which provides Trump with the best information possible. But in a congressional meeting, she declined to answer whether Iran's nuclear program poses an “imminent threat”.

While speaking with Tucker Carlson, Joe Kent also suggested that there are “no reins on Israelis" and “they want the region to descend into chaos”.

"I know the Israeli officials - some in intelligence, some in government- will come to US government officials and they will say all kinds of things that we know from our intelligence just simply isn’t true," said Kent on Tucker Carlson's show.

He also said that there would be an attempt to “discredit” him, but he would appreciate a chance to speak to the US President Donald Trump. Kent, a Trump loyalist, suggested that Trump is listening to this, and he also knows that this war is not going well for them.