War Secretary Pete Hegseth on Thursday fired Army Lt. Gen. Brett Sylvia, the Joint Staff’s director of strategy, plans and policy, after an Air Force investigation found he leaked classified information about U.S. policy on Iran and Ukraine to reporters. Sylvia admitted to the leaks on video after failing four polygraph tests, Fox News reported, citing Axios. The case has been referred to the Justice Department.
“Army Lieutenant General Brett Sylvia … was fired by Secretary Hegseth for severe misconduct,” a War Department official said in a statement quoted by RedState. “The extent of his leaking became so critical that Secretary Hegseth took immediate action and fired Sylvia in order to protect national security.” That official put the number of failed polygraphs at three.
What investigators found
The leaking began as early as June 2025, the Jerusalem Post reported, citing Axios. According to the investigative report, Sylvia “relied on notes he took while reviewing a classified secret report” to pass along information on U.S. assistance to Ukraine. He used the Signal messaging app and met one reporter at a diner in Arlington, Va., about 10 minutes from the Pentagon. That reporter was writing a book, the Post reported.
The Gateway Pundit, citing the records Axios reported, said Sylvia also “admitted to being one of the 20 officials” attacking Hegseth’s leadership in the press. Other outlets have not reported that detail.
The J-5 directorate Sylvia ran handles military strategy and planning for the Joint Chiefs. His firing came the same day CENTCOM commander Adm. Brad Cooper briefed President Trump at the White House on options for renewed strikes on Iran.
“We vowed to find you”
Chief Pentagon spokesman Sean Parnell announced the action on X without naming Sylvia. “Classified information is not personal property,” he wrote. “Leaking it for personal, political or professional gain is a betrayal of the trust placed in those responsible for keeping it. Our commitment was not an empty promise. We vowed to find you, and we meant it.” He said the matter, “along with others,” had gone to the Justice Department.
The Justice Department said it “has ongoing investigations related to possible leaks of classified information,” RedState reported.
The Joint Staff first issued a statement thanking Sylvia and his family “for their 32 years of distinguished service to our nation.” It then said, “We are withdrawing our earlier statement concerning this personnel matter.”
Trump told reporters Thursday, “We’re very much looking for leakers.” In July, the Pentagon and the Justice Department set up a joint task force to find leakers, the Jerusalem Post reported, citing the Washington Post.
A colleague told the Washington Post that Sylvia “has repeatedly denied that he leaked classified information” but acknowledged past contact with journalists. Pentagon spokespeople have not released evidence backing the findings.
The bottom line
The United States is at war with Iran. Tankers are being hit in the Strait of Hormuz, and the Pentagon is preparing strike options for the president. The officer in charge of the Joint Staff’s strategy and plans shop, according to the investigation, took notes from a secret report and passed them to a reporter over Signal and at a diner. An enlisted soldier who did the same would expect a court-martial.
Hegseth was right to fire him at once. The Joint Staff’s first instinct was to thank Sylvia for his service. It withdrew that statement, but the first reaction shows how slowly the senior ranks have accepted that leaking classified material to win internal fights is a crime.
Sylvia denies wrongdoing, and he is entitled to make his case. The proper place for that is a courtroom. The Justice Department should move quickly, lay out the evidence and apply the same standard to a three-star general that it would apply to anyone else holding a clearance.