Hegseth asks the Army’s top Uniformed Officer to Step Down while US Wages War Against Iran

U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has asked the Army’s top uniformed officer, Gen. Randy George, to step down, the Pentagon said Thursday, as the United States wages a war against Iran.

A Pentagon official, who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss the sensitive matter, confirmed that George has been asked to take early retirement from the post of Army chief of staff, which he has held since August 2023.

The ouster of George is just the latest of more than a dozen firings of top generals and admirals by Hegseth since he first took office last year.

Pentagon not offering a reason for Army chief’s departure amid Iran war

Sean Parnell, the Pentagon’s top spokesperson, said Gen. Randy George “will be retiring from his position as the 41st Chief of Staff of the Army effective immediately.”

The ouster is the latest of more than a dozen firings of top generals and admirals by Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth. As with many of those, Pentagon officials are not offering a reason for George’s departure, which comes nearly five weeks into U.S.-Israeli attacks on Iran and with no clear timeline from the president on when the war may end.

George has held the post of Army chief of staff, which typically runs for four years, since August 2023, under the Biden administration.

He is a graduate of West Point Military Academy and an infantry officer who served in the first Gulf War as well as Iraq and Afghanistan. He was former Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin’s top military aide from 2021 to 2022.

Source: AP news