A highly anticipated Pentagon review has concluded that Pentagon chief Pete Hegseth violated official protocols by sharing 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 details about a planned air attack in Yemen targeting Houthi militants. This discussion was revealed after a journalist for the Atlantic was included as a participant.
Other individuals in the chat 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 officials are not employed at the Department of Defense.
Signal is a publicly available communication application that was not authorized for transmitting classified information.
Potential Threat to Forces
The internal investigation determined that the information shared by Hegseth was secret and posed a risk to the safety of US service members if it had been obtained by a foreign enemy force.
However, the document also noted that Hegseth had the ability to declassify the material he distributed, though it was not specified whether he formally did so.
Secretary's Reaction
The source indicated that Hegseth refused to be interviewed by the inspector general. Instead, he submitted a brief written statement.
In his response, Hegseth asserted he only disclosed information that would not have risked lives or jeopardized the mission. He added that he had the right to declassify material and considered the investigation to be politically motivated.
Next Steps
The finalized investigation has been provided to Congress. An publicly releasable copy is anticipated to be released later this week.
