Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth on Friday dismissed Lt. Gen. Jeffrey Kruse as director of the Defense Intelligence Agency, according to White House and Pentagon officials. Kruse’s removal follows the leak of a preliminary DIA assessment that concluded U.S. strikes in June had set back Iran’s nuclear program only by months, contradicting President Donald Trump’s assertion that the facilities were “completely obliterated.” Pentagon officials cited a “loss of confidence” in Kruse’s leadership but offered no further explanation. The firing adds to a growing list of senior military and intelligence officials pushed out after producing analyses at odds with the administration’s public statements. Hegseth also removed Vice Adm. Nancy Lacore, chief of the Navy Reserve, and Rear Adm. Milton Sands, commander of Naval Special Warfare Command, the same day. Kruse, who had led the DIA since February 2024, will be replaced on an acting basis by the agency’s deputy director, Christine Bordine. Lawmakers including Senate Intelligence Committee Vice Chair Mark Warner warned that politicised personnel moves could chill dissent across the intelligence community. The Pentagon has not indicated when a permanent successor will be nominated.