A highly anticipated Pentagon review has determined that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth breached departmental policies by disclosing classified information in a Signal messaging chat, according to a person briefed on the findings.
Details of the Incident
The chat group in question contained particulars about a scheduled air attack in Yemen against Houthi fighters. This discussion came to light after a journalist for the Atlantic was included as a participant.
Other officials in the group allegedly included JD Vance, CIA director John Ratcliffe, and then-national security adviser 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 messaging app that was not authorized for handling sensitive material.
Potential Risk to Forces
The inspector general's report found that the intelligence circulated by Hegseth was secret and posed a risk to the lives of US service members if it had been intercepted by a foreign enemy force.
However, the document acknowledged that Hegseth possessed the authority to downgrade the material he shared, though it was not specified whether he actually exercised that authority.
Hegseth's Reaction
The source indicated that Hegseth declined an interview by the inspector general. Instead, he submitted a short written response.
In his statement, Hegseth claimed he only disclosed details that would not have risked lives or jeopardized the operation. He further stated that he possessed the authority to declassify material and viewed the inspector general to be politically motivated.
Future Actions
The finalized investigation has been shared with lawmakers. An unclassified version is expected to be released in the coming days.
