A long-awaited Pentagon report has determined that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth violated departmental policies by sharing secret intelligence in a Signal messaging chat, as stated by a source familiar with the report.
Details of the Event
The chat group in dispute included particulars about a scheduled air attack in Yemen against Houthi fighters. This chat was revealed after a journalist for the Atlantic was added as a participant.
Other officials in the group allegedly included Senator JD Vance, CIA director John Ratcliffe, and former security advisor Mike Waltz. The report focused solely on the actions of Hegseth, as the other participants do not work at the Pentagon.
Signal is a publicly available messaging app that was not authorized for transmitting classified information.
Potential Risk to Troops
The internal investigation determined that the intelligence circulated by Hegseth was classified and posed a risk to the safety of US service members if it had been obtained by a hostile nation.
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 refused to be interviewed by the investigators. Instead, he submitted a short written response.
In his response, Hegseth claimed he only shared details that would not have risked lives or compromised the operation. He further stated that he had the right to declassify material and considered the inspector general to be partisan.
Future Actions
The completed report has been provided to lawmakers. An publicly releasable copy is anticipated to be made public later this week.
