Washington ignored intel warnings on Iran – Trump’s ex-counterterror chief

The US has been dragged into war by Israel despite CIA assessments that Tehran was not building a bomb, Joe Kent has said.

Washington joined Israel’s war against Iran despite intelligence assessments that the Islamic Republic was not developing nuclear weapons, US President Donald Trump’s former counterterrorism chief, Joe Kent, has said.

Kent, who resigned in protest as head of the US National Counterterrorism Center in March, argues that West Jerusalem dragged Washington into another “never-ending” conflict that does not serve American interests.

In a post on X on Thursday, Kent said the entire US intelligence community, including the CIA, had agreed before the escalation that Tehran was not pursuing a nuclear weapon.

He added that US agencies had also warned that Iran would target American bases across the Middle East and attempt to shut down the Strait of Hormuz if attacked by Israel or the US.

One of the many tragedies of this war is that before the war began the U.S. Intel Community, including CIA, was in agreement that Iran wasn’t developing a nuclear weapon & that Iran would target U.S. bases in the region & shut down the Strait of Hormuz if they were attacked by… https://t.co/6fqTW7qLX3

— Joe Kent (@joekent16jan19) May 7, 2026

Despite this, “the narrative and agenda spun by a foreign government – Israel, won the argument and forced us into this war,” Kent wrote.

A former CIA officer, Kent claims that Trump fell victim to an Israeli misinformation campaign portraying Tehran as a threat. Similar lies were used to drag the US into war with Iraq back in 2003, he has argued.

Trump rejected those allegations last month, insisting that “Israel never talked me into the war with Iran” and reiterating that “Iran can never have a nuclear weapon.” Tehran has consistently maintained that its nuclear program is peaceful.

The US and Israel launched a military campaign against Iran in late February, prompting retaliatory strikes by Tehran on regional targets and shipping routes linked to the Strait of Hormuz. Despite a ceasefire announced by Trump last month, the US military launched a wave of strikes on Iranian targets near the strait on Thursday night, while Tehran accused Washington of violating the truce and responded by targeting American warships in the area.

According to Axios, US-Iran negotiations have focused on a proposed 14-point memorandum that reportedly includes a moratorium on Iranian uranium enrichment, phased US sanctions relief, the release of frozen Iranian funds, and guarantees of free transit through Hormuz.