A long-awaited Pentagon review has determined that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth breached official protocols by disclosing secret information in a Signal messaging chat, according to a person briefed on the findings.
Details of the Event
The online conversation in question contained details about a planned airstrike in Yemen targeting Houthi militants. This chat was revealed after a reporter for the Atlantic was added as a member.
Other individuals in the group allegedly included Senator JD Vance, CIA director John Ratcliffe, and then-national security adviser Mike Waltz. The investigation focused solely on the actions of Hegseth, as the other officials are not employed at the Department of Defense.
Signal is a publicly available messaging app that was not authorized for transmitting sensitive material.
Serious Risk to Troops
The inspector general's report found that the intelligence shared by Hegseth was classified and could have endangered the lives of US troops if it had been obtained by a foreign enemy force.
However, the report acknowledged that Hegseth possessed the authority to declassify the material he shared, though it was unclear whether he actually exercised that authority.
Hegseth's Reaction
The informed individual said that Hegseth refused to be interviewed by the investigators. Instead, he provided a short written response.
In his statement, Hegseth claimed he only disclosed details that would not have endangered personnel or jeopardized the operation. He further stated that he possessed the authority to declassify material and considered the investigation to be politically motivated.
Next Steps
The finalized investigation has been shared with lawmakers. An unclassified version is expected to be released in the coming days.
