Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has removed Lt. Gen. Brett Sylvia, one of the Pentagon’s most senior military planners, amid an investigation into allegations that he disclosed classified information to journalists concerning the Iran war, Ukraine and other sensitive national-security matters. Reuters

Sylvia served as director of the Joint Staff’s Strategy, Plans and Policy Directorate, or J5, which helps develop military strategy and advises the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. Before taking the position, he commanded the Army’s 101st Airborne Division and accumulated more than three decades of military service, including combat deployments to Iraq and Afghanistan. Reuters

A Pentagon official told Fox News and other outlets that Sylvia failed three polygraph examinations connected to the leak investigation and allegedly met journalists outside the Pentagon after new restrictions limited reporters’ unescorted access inside the building. Reuters reported that the Pentagon said an Air Force Office of Special Investigations inquiry preceded his removal and that the matter has now been referred to the Justice Department for possible legal action. Fox News

Those allegations have not resulted in criminal charges, and failing a polygraph does not itself establish that someone committed a crime. Sylvia had not publicly responded to the accusations when the reports were published. AP News

There are also competing accounts of what led to his dismissal. The Atlantic, which first reported Sylvia’s removal, said Hegseth had lost confidence in him amid tensions involving Pentagon policy chief Elbridge Colby. The Pentagon’s subsequent account instead emphasized the alleged leaks and ongoing investigation. The Atlantic

Sylvia’s departure comes during broader turnover among senior military leadership under Hegseth and at a particularly sensitive moment, as the Pentagon prepares military options while President Trump considers whether to resume strikes against Iran. AP News

For now, the central issue remains unresolved: Sylvia has been removed from his position and the allegations have been referred to federal prosecutors, but no court has determined that he leaked classified information or committed a crime.