A long-awaited Pentagon review has determined that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth violated official protocols by disclosing classified intelligence in a Signal messaging chat, according to a source familiar with the report.
Particulars of the Incident
The online conversation in question contained details about a scheduled airstrike in Yemen against Houthi fighters. This chat came to light after a journalist for the Atlantic was included as a member.
Other individuals in the chat reportedly included Senator JD Vance, CIA director John Ratcliffe, and former security advisor Mike Waltz. The investigation focused solely on the actions 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 sensitive material.
Serious Threat to Troops
The internal investigation found that the intelligence circulated by Hegseth was classified and could have endangered the lives of US troops if it had been obtained 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 actually did so.
Secretary's Response
The source indicated that Hegseth refused to be interviewed by the inspector general. Instead, he provided a short written response.
In his response, Hegseth claimed he only disclosed details that would not have endangered personnel or jeopardized the mission. He added that he possessed the authority to downgrade information and viewed the investigation to be partisan.
Future Actions
The completed report has been shared with Congress. An unclassified version is anticipated to be released later this week.
