Fired General Admitted Leaking Iran, Ukraine Secrets, Report Says

The Army general fired this week as the Pentagon’s top military planner admitted to leaking classified information about Iran and Ukraine to two reporters at separate outlets, according to an internal investigation report obtained by Axios on Thursday.

Lt. Gen. Brett Sylvia, who led the Joint Staff’s Strategy, Plans and Policy Directorate, known as the J5, acknowledged the disclosures on video after failing four polygraph tests, a U.S. official told Axios. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth removed Sylvia on Wednesday over what the Pentagon described as severe misconduct, according to the Times of India’s account of the Axios report.

🚨 HOLY CRAP! The Pentagon's Lt. Gen. Brett Sylvia — who was just fired by SecWar Pete Hegseth — has ADMITTED to leaking classified Iran and Ukraine intelligence to *two reporters* at two different outlets, according to an internal investigation report obtained by Axios

AND SO… pic.twitter.com/rmnedL0WnE

— Eric Daugherty (@EricLDaugh) October 29, 2026

The internal report accused Sylvia of making “unauthorized disclosures to the media,” Iran International reported, citing Axios. The investigation has been referred to the Justice Department, according to the Times of India.

A diner meeting and a deleted Signal thread

According to the report described by Axios, the leaks began as early as June 2025 and continued over roughly a year, carried out through the encrypted Signal app and at least once in person at a Silver Diner in Arlington, Virginia.

During that meeting, Sylvia relied on notes he took while reviewing a classified report to orally share information about U.S. assistance to Ukraine, according to the Times of India’s account of the Axios report.

The report also examined Sylvia’s contact with a second reporter. Sylvia told investigators he received a Signal message he believed “had something to do with Iran” and then deleted it along with the entire thread, and U.S. officials suspect the deletion was intentional, Iran International reported, citing Axios.

Referred to the Justice Department

The investigation remains ongoing and has been referred to the Department of Justice for further action, according to the Pentagon, Al Jazeera reported. A Defense Department official told Al Jazeera that Sylvia had been “meeting with journalists outside the Pentagon in order to leak classified information” and was under investigation over leaks about “the Iran war, the war between Russia and Ukraine, and more.”

That official told Al Jazeera that Sylvia “failed three polygraphs,” a lower count than the four cited by the U.S. official who spoke to Axios. The official also said Sylvia “was not a central planner for the Iran war,” adding that the responsibility belongs to U.S. Central Command, according to Al Jazeera.

Pentagon spokesman Sean Parnell said in a post on X that “the Department of War has zero tolerance for the intentional, unauthorized disclosure of classified information,” Al Jazeera reported, noting that he did not name Sylvia.

Not everyone accepts the leak account. Two Pentagon sources told CBS News that Sylvia’s firing was tied to the polygraph tests but disputed the allegation that he leaked classified information, Iran International reported. No charges have been announced.

Part of a wider crackdown

Sylvia is the latest senior official Hegseth has accused of leaking to the press. Hegseth fired three aides from his inner circle last year as part of a broader leak investigation that included polygraph tests, according to Al Jazeera. Sylvia previously commanded the 101st Airborne Division at Fort Campbell, Kentucky, and his decorations include six Bronze Star Medals and a Purple Heart, Al Jazeera reported.

The firing comes as the U.S. military plans for a possible resumption of intensive strikes on Iran, Iran International reported. For Hegseth’s supporters, the Axios report answers critics who questioned the abrupt dismissal of the Pentagon’s top planner days before the midterm elections.

Sources

• Axios: Fired general admitted to leaking classified Iran and Ukraine info, report says
• Times of India
• Iran International
• Al Jazeera
• Eric Daugherty on X

Reporting by Daily Beltway.