Fired Pentagon Planner Admitted Leaking Iran and Ukraine Secrets, Report Says

Army Lt. Gen. Brett Sylvia, fired this week as the Pentagon’s top military planner, admitted leaking classified information about Ukraine and Iran to two reporters, according to an internal investigative report.

The report, shared with Axios Thursday, says Sylvia passed the information to reporters at two separate news outlets over roughly a year. A U.S. official said he acknowledged the conduct on video after failing four polygraph tests.

Investigators found the leaking began as early as June 2025 and continued over the encrypted Signal app. Sylvia also met one reporter in person at a Silver Diner in Arlington, Virginia, according to the report.

Officials suspect Sylvia intentionally deleted any trace of his Signal contact with one of the reporters, then claimed the deletion was an accident.

The report says he also admitted being one of 20 officials cited in a story critical of Pentagon leadership.

Fired and Referred to Justice

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth removed Sylvia late Wednesday as director of strategy, plans and policy for the Joint Chiefs of Staff, the Associated Press reported. The office generates and coordinates military plans for the chairman and the president.

A Pentagon official’s statement reported by the AP said Sylvia failed three polygraph tests, one fewer than the figure Axios was given.

The official said Sylvia was under investigation for sharing classified information on the Iran war and the Russia-Ukraine conflict with journalists.

Chief Pentagon spokesman Sean Parnell said the department “took necessary personnel action to protect sensitive information” and sent the matter to the Justice Department for “potential further legal action.”

Officials said the general has been referred for possible criminal prosecution. It is not clear why the Pentagon is pursuing the case in civilian court rather than through the military justice system.

Asked about the firing Thursday, President Donald Trump told reporters, “She’s gonna have big problems,” mistakenly referring to the male general as a woman.

The Joint Staff also withdrew a Wednesday statement thanking Sylvia for “32 years of distinguished service,” saying it “did not appropriately reflect the full circumstances.”

Another U.S. official told Axios that Acting Army Secretary Adam Telle’s office lobbied the Joint Staff to issue that supportive statement. An Army official denied the claim, calling it false and part of a “coordinated campaign of lies.”

Not everyone accepts the leak account. Two Pentagon sources told CBS News the firing was tied to polygraph tests but said the leak allegations were untrue. Sylvia did not respond to messages from the AP or Axios.

The Pentagon official insisted Sylvia was not a “central planner” on the Iran conflict, saying that work belongs to U.S. Central Command. The firing comes as Trump weighs renewed strikes on Iran after next week’s midterm elections.

Sylvia commanded the 101st Airborne Division at Fort Campbell, Kentucky, until May 2025. His awards include six Bronze Star Medals, one for valor, and a Purple Heart.

The case is the latest in Hegseth’s crackdown on leaks. He fired three aides from his inner circle last year in a leak probe that also used polygraphs; those aides called the accusations against them “baseless attacks.”

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