WASHINGTON — The head of the Defense Intelligence Agency, Lt. Gen. Jeffrey Kruse, has been removed from his post; the latest abrupt departure by senior civilian and military officials.
“We can confirm that Lt. Gen. Kruse is no longer the Director of the Defense Intelligence Agency. Deputy Director Christine Bordine assumes the role of Acting Director of DIA effective immediately,” a DIA spokesperson told Breaking Defense today, referring further questions to the Pentagon. A DoD spokesperson confirmed Kruse’s removal but did not comment further.
Kruse had been in the position since February 2024 after an appointment by then-President Joe Biden, meaning his exit comes well short of the usual approximately three-year posting. Before that he served as the Director of National Intelligence’s military affairs advisor, following a long career in military intelligence. The Washington Post first reported Kruse’s ouster.
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It’s unclear what prompted Kruse’s removal. The Post noted, however, that it comes weeks following reports relating to an initial DIA assessment of US airstrikes against targets in Iran that did not line up with President Donald Trump’s claim — repeated by Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth — that Iran’s nuclear capability had been “obliterated.”
More broadly, Kruse follows a host of senior civilian and military leaders who have been shown the door by the new administration, from the head of the National Security Agency to the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff to the Secretary of the Navy.
Today the DIA posted on X that Kruse had recently hosted Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard as part of an intelligence officers conference.
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Author: Lee Ferran and Ashley Roque
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