General Randy A. George will step down as the 41st Chief of Staff of the Army, effective immediately. The Department of Defense is grateful to General George for his decades of service to our country. We wish him all the best in retirement," Pentagon spokesman Sean Parnell said in a statement.
The Chief of Staff of the Army typically serves a four-year term. George assumed the role in 2023 after being nominated by then-President Joe Biden and was slated to remain in the position until 2027.
His departure marks another change made by Hegseth among senior officers who were members of the Joint Chiefs of Staff when he took over as Secretary of Defense. Hegseth has fired or marginalized more than ten admirals and generals. He previously dismissed General CQ Brown from his position as Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and Admiral Lisa Franchetti from her role as Chief of Naval Operations.
On Thursday, Hegseth also fired General David Hodne, head of the Army's Transformation and Training Command, as well as Major General William Green, the Army's Chief of Chaplains, according to a U.S. official.
George previously served as the senior military assistant to then-Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin, and U.S. officials noted that speculation about his potential removal had been circulating for over a year.
A defense official told ABC News that the Vice Chief of Staff of the Army, General Christopher LaNeve, will assume the role of acting Chief of Staff, reflecting the standard chain of command and the reason why the two top positions in the Army are held by four-star generals. Such a transfer of duties is activated when the Chief of Staff is unable to perform the role or is removed.
"The assumption of this role by the Vice Chief of Staff is an expected and appropriate move," the defense official said.
George is an infantry officer who enlisted in the Army in 1982 before graduating from West Point in 1988 and receiving his officer commission. He held command positions in some of the Army's most elite ground combat units, including the 173rd Airborne Brigade and the 4th Infantry Division.
During his tenure as Army Chief, he oversaw efforts to transform the U.S. Army from the global war on terrorism era into a force capable of fighting major conflicts, such as a potential confrontation with China, with significant investments in drone technology, long-range systems, and industrial capacity.
He also consolidated various parts of the Army, reduced administration and the number of generals, aiming to create a more flexible and agile force.
George was reprimanded (which in the military constitutes a public admonishment) while serving as a brigade commander in Afghanistan in 2009, due to his role in overseeing Combat Outpost Keating—a small, remote American base that was nearly overrun by the Taliban and later destroyed by U.S. forces.
In that attack, eight U.S. soldiers were killed, with two posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor. The battle was depicted in the film *The Outpost*.
LaNeve previously served as Hegseth's senior military assistant.