A long-awaited Department of Defense review has concluded that Pentagon chief Pete Hegseth violated official protocols by disclosing secret information in a Signal messaging chat, as stated by a person briefed on the findings.
Particulars of the Incident
The chat group in question included particulars about a scheduled airstrike in Yemen against Houthi fighters. This chat was revealed after a reporter for the Atlantic was added as a participant.
Other individuals in the chat reportedly 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 Department of Defense.
Signal is a publicly available communication application that was not approved for handling classified information.
Potential Threat to Troops
The inspector general's report determined that the intelligence circulated by Hegseth was classified and posed a risk to the lives of US service members if it had been obtained by a foreign enemy force.
Notably, the report acknowledged that Hegseth possessed the authority to downgrade the information he distributed, though it was unclear whether he formally exercised that authority.
Secretary's Reaction
The informed individual said that Hegseth declined an interview by the inspector general. Instead, he submitted a short written response.
In his statement, Hegseth asserted he only shared details that would not have risked lives or jeopardized the mission. He further stated that he had the right to downgrade information and considered the inspector general to be politically motivated.
Future Actions
The completed report has been provided to lawmakers. An unclassified version is anticipated to be released later this week.
