A highly anticipated Department of Defense review has concluded that Pentagon chief Pete Hegseth breached official protocols by disclosing classified information in a Signal messaging chat, as stated by a person briefed on the findings.
Details of the Incident
The online conversation in dispute included particulars about a planned air attack in Yemen targeting Houthi fighters. This chat came to light after a journalist for the Atlantic was included as a member.
Other officials in the group allegedly included Senator JD Vance, CIA director John Ratcliffe, and former security advisor Mike Waltz. The investigation did not examine the actions of Hegseth, as the other participants do not work at the Pentagon.
Signal is a publicly available communication application that was not authorized for transmitting classified information.
Potential Risk to Forces
The inspector general's report determined that the intelligence circulated by Hegseth was secret and could have endangered the safety of US service members if it had been intercepted by a hostile nation.
Notably, the report also noted that Hegseth possessed the authority to declassify the material he shared, though it was not specified whether he formally did so.
Hegseth's Reaction
The informed individual said that Hegseth refused to be interviewed by the inspector general. Instead, he submitted a short written response.
In his response, Hegseth claimed he only shared details that would not have risked lives or compromised the operation. He further stated that he had the right to downgrade information and considered the inspector general to be partisan.
Next Steps
The finalized investigation has been shared with lawmakers. An unclassified version is expected to be made public later this week.
