Hegseth fires Pentagon’s top military planner even as Trump considers new strikes on Iran

WASHINGTON (AP) — Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has fired the Pentagon’s top military planner, a defense official said Wednesday, the latest in a series of generals to be ousted and coming even as President Donald Trump considers new strikes against Iran in the eight-month war.

Lt. Gen. Brett Sylvia has been removed as chief of strategy, plans and policy for the Joint Chiefs of Staff. He is the second general to be ousted from the post, known in military circles as “J5,” under Hegseth. His predecessor, Lt. Gen. Joseph McGee, was forced to retire last October.

The defense official, who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss sensitive personnel matters, said there was no immediate replacement for Sylvia and no reason was given for the dismissal. This decision was previously reported by The Atlantic.

A spokesperson for the Joint Chiefs of Staff said that “the President, the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and the Joint Force express our deepest gratitude to Lt. Gen. Brett Sylvia and his family for their 32 years of distinguished service to our nation” and they “wish him and his family the best.”

Typically, the J5 Director and his staff are responsible for generating and coordinating military plans with the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs and the President. Sylvia’s firing comes as Trump has repeatedly called for launching new military operations against Iran.

Trump vowed to “finish the job” in Iran after launching war with Israel eight months ago and said further strikes were an option after next week’s midterm elections.

U.S. officials have asked several Middle Eastern countries and regional allies to prepare for a possible resumption of military action after Tuesday’s election as well as the possibility that Iran might try to retaliate against them, two diplomats briefed on the matter said. They say Trump has not made a final decision on further strikes.

A third US aircraft carrier and thousands of additional troops are heading to the region.

Before coming to the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Sylvia served as commander of the 101st Airborne Division at Fort Campbell, Kentucky, until May 2025, according to her official biography, which has now been taken offline. He was also vice-director of J5.

He is the latest of about 20 generals, admirals and other military leaders to have been fired, forced to retire or otherwise leave during Hegseth’s tenure — almost all of whom have not been publicly explained by the Pentagon. This includes civilian secretaries of the Army and Navy as well as certain senior uniformed officers of the military services.

The Pentagon did not immediately respond to messages seeking comment Wednesday evening.

Hegseth said last month that he had ordered the Army to double reductions in the overall number of senior officers to 20% by Jan. 1, 2027. There are currently about 800 general and flag officer positions.

“I call this accountability and long overdue,” Hegseth told junior officers and enlisted leaders at Marine Corps Base Quantico Sept. 30.

Some members of Congress criticized the cuts to the generals’ ranks, calling them a “purge” that would take years to rebuild.

“He has some sort of deep-seated grievance about leadership in the military,” Sen. Mark Kelly, Democrat of Arizona, a former Navy combat pilot who has criticized Hegseth, said last month. “He’s purging a generation of great military leaders, and it’s going to take a generation to recover from that.”

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Associated Press writers Aamer Madhani in Washington and Samy Magdy in New York contributed to this report.