A highly anticipated Department of Defense review has determined that Pentagon chief Pete Hegseth violated departmental policies by disclosing secret information in a Signal messaging chat, as stated by a person briefed on the findings.
Particulars of the Incident
The online conversation in question contained details about a scheduled airstrike in Yemen against Houthi militants. This discussion was revealed after a journalist for the Atlantic was added as a participant.
Other individuals in the group reportedly included Senator JD Vance, CIA director John Ratcliffe, and then-national security adviser Mike Waltz. The report did not examine the conduct of Hegseth, as the other participants are not employed at the Department of Defense.
Signal is a publicly available communication application that was not approved for transmitting classified information.
Serious Threat to Forces
The inspector general's report found that the intelligence shared by Hegseth was classified and could have endangered the safety of US troops if it had been intercepted by a hostile nation.
Notably, the document acknowledged that Hegseth had the ability to downgrade the material he shared, though it was unclear whether he formally exercised that authority.
Secretary's Reaction
The source indicated that Hegseth refused to be interviewed by the investigators. Instead, he provided a brief written statement.
In his statement, Hegseth asserted he only disclosed information that would not have endangered personnel or compromised the operation. He further stated that he possessed the authority to downgrade information and viewed the investigation to be partisan.
Future Actions
The completed report has been shared with lawmakers. An publicly releasable copy is anticipated to be made public in the coming days.
