U.S. Army Chief of Staff Randy George was fired on Thursday by Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, three U.S. defense officials told Reuters, in the latest purge among the Pentagon's most senior ranks.
Even as Hegseth, a former Fox News host, has moved quickly to reshape the department, firing a general during wartime is nearly without precedent.
The Pentagon confirmed that George, who had more than a year left in his term, "will be retiring from his position as the 41st Chief of Staff of the Army effective immediately."
The Pentagon said in a statement it was grateful for George's decades of service. "We wish him well in his retirement," it said.
Two of the officials, speaking on the condition of anonymity, said Hegseth has also fired General David Hodne, who leads the Army's Transformation and Training Command, and Major General William Green, head of the Army's Chaplain Corps.
The department did not give a reason for George's departure, which comes as the U.S. military builds up its forces in the Middle East while carrying out operations against Iran.
The U.S. strikes in the region are largely being carried out by the Navy and Air Force, although U.S. Army soldiers have been dispatched to the Middle East for air defense systems. The Army is the largest branch of the U.S. military, with about 450,000 active-duty soldiers.
Thousands of soldiers from the U.S. Army's elite 82nd Airborne Division have also started arriving in the Middle East, potentially for ground operations in Iran.
