A long-awaited Pentagon review has concluded that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth violated official protocols by disclosing secret information in a Signal messaging chat, as stated by a source familiar with the report.
Details of the Incident
The chat group in dispute contained particulars about a planned air attack in Yemen against Houthi militants. This discussion came to light after a journalist for the Atlantic was included as a member.
Other officials in the chat allegedly included 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 commercially offered communication application that was not approved for handling classified information.
Potential Risk to Forces
The internal investigation determined that the information circulated by Hegseth was classified and posed a risk to the lives of US service members if it had been intercepted by a foreign enemy force.
Notably, the report also noted that Hegseth possessed the authority to declassify the information he distributed, though it was not specified whether he formally exercised that authority.
Hegseth's Reaction
The source said that Hegseth refused to be interviewed by the investigators. Instead, he submitted a brief written statement.
In his response, Hegseth claimed he only shared details that would not have risked lives or compromised the operation. He added that he possessed the authority to downgrade information and viewed the investigation to be partisan.
Future Actions
The finalized investigation has been shared with Congress. An unclassified version is anticipated to be made public later this week.
