Overview
- Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth removed Army Lt. Gen. Brett Sylvia from the Joint Chiefs’ director for strategy, plans and policy role on Wednesday, stripping the J5 post of its leader.
- Pentagon officials say Sylvia is under investigation for allegedly sharing classified information, failed multiple polygraph exams, and that the Air Force Office of Special Investigations referred the matter to the Justice Department for possible legal action.
- No replacement has been announced and Sylvia’s official Joint Chiefs biography was pulled from the website, creating a gap in the office that crafts military advice for the chairman and the president.
- The firing is the latest in a broad Hegseth-led turnover that has removed dozens of senior officers and accelerated plans to cut top ranks by about 20 percent, prompting lawmakers to warn of lost expertise and erosion of civil‑military norms.
- What to watch next: the outcome of the Justice Department review, any interim stewardship of the J5 duties, and whether the personnel shakeup affects U.S. readiness as the White House weighs possible renewed strikes on Iran.