A long-awaited Pentagon review has concluded that Pentagon chief Pete Hegseth violated official protocols by disclosing secret information in a private Signal group, as stated by a source familiar with the report.
Details of the Incident
The online conversation in dispute included particulars about a planned airstrike in Yemen targeting Houthi militants. This chat was revealed after a journalist for the Atlantic was included as a participant.
Other individuals in the chat allegedly included JD Vance, CIA director John Ratcliffe, and former security advisor Mike Waltz. The investigation did not examine the conduct of Hegseth, as the other participants do not work at the Department of Defense.
Signal is a publicly available messaging app that was not approved for transmitting sensitive material.
Serious Risk to Forces
The inspector general's report determined that the intelligence shared by Hegseth was secret and could have endangered the lives of US service members if it had been intercepted by a foreign enemy force.
Notably, the report also noted that Hegseth had the ability to declassify the information he distributed, though it was unclear whether he formally exercised that authority.
Hegseth's Reaction
The informed individual indicated that Hegseth declined an interview by the investigators. Instead, he submitted a brief written statement.
In his response, Hegseth asserted he only shared information that would not have risked lives or compromised the mission. He further stated that he possessed the authority to downgrade information and considered the investigation to be partisan.
Next Steps
The finalized investigation has been shared with Congress. An unclassified version is expected to be made public later this week.
