Accuses pro-Israel lobbyists of undermining diplomatic efforts by shifting US red line on Iran nuclear programme
Former National Counterterrorism Center Director Joseph Kent attends a House Homeland Security hearing entitled “Worldwide Threats to the Homeland,” on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C., US December 11, 2025 . PHOTO: REUTERS
The former director of the United States National Counterterrorism Centre has said that late Iranian security chief Ali Larijani, who was recently killed by a US-Israeli strike, was eager to negotiate for a deal with the US.
Joe Kent, a 20-year US Army Special Forces combat veteran and former Central Intelligence Agency paramilitary officer who later headed the counterterrorism agency, made the comments in an interview with well-known conservative commentator Tucker Carlson the day after resigning.
“We just killed, you know, Ali Larijani, who was a negotiator, who was eager to get us a deal again,” Kent said, expressing concern that the killing of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council secretary might garner support for the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC).
“If you give the IRGC a reason to take more control, and they get support from the people, because again, you kill off the Ayatollah, they can say, hey, the last guy was too moderate. Look at what it got us. Like, give us more, more control. And the Iranian people are gonna be like, well, actually, yeah, I don’t like getting bombed by the Americans and Israelis. Maybe we do need to listen to the IRGC,” Kent said.
Iranian authorities said Larijani was killed early on Tuesday in a US-Israeli strike that also claimed the lives of his son Morteza, his aide Alireza Bayat, several council staff members, and bodyguards.
Kent told Carlson that Iran posed no imminent threat to the US and accused pro-Israel lobbyists and think tanks of undermining diplomatic efforts by shifting Washington’s red line on Tehran’s nuclear programme.
The US and Israel have continued a joint offensive on Iran since February 28, killing so far around 1,300 people, including then-supreme leader Ali Khamenei.
Iran has retaliated with drone and missile strikes targeting Israel, Jordan, Iraq, and Gulf countries hosting US military assets, causing casualties and damage to infrastructure while disrupting global markets and aviation.
Notably, Kent also raised questions about the investigation into right-wing American activist and influencer Charlie Kirk’s death in September of last year, suggesting that it was cut short.
He said the killing of Kirk, one of US President Donald Trump’s closest advisers and a vocal opponent of war with Iran who had reportedly advocated for the US to at least rethink its relationship with Israel, deserved further scrutiny.
Read More: Israel claims Iran’s national security chief Ali Larijani ‘eliminated’
“He was suddenly publicly assassinated, and we’re not allowed to ask any questions about that,” he said.
“There are unanswered questions,” he said, adding the probe was stopped before his team could “run down” remaining leads.
Meanwhile, Axios reported that Kent had been under investigation by the Federal Bureau of Intelligence on suspicion of leaking classified information.
Administration officials had long labelled Kent a “known leaker” and barred him from presidential briefings, sources told the outlet.
He was suspected of passing information to Carlson and at least one other podcaster. The FBI is also examining leaked intelligence related to Iran and Israel, according to one source.
Kent did not respond to requests for comment, Axios said.
