A highly anticipated Department of Defense report has determined that Pentagon chief Pete Hegseth violated official protocols by sharing secret information in a Signal messaging chat, according to a person briefed on the findings.
Particulars of the Incident
The online conversation in dispute contained details about a planned air attack in Yemen targeting Houthi militants. This discussion was revealed after a reporter for the Atlantic was included as a member.
Other officials in the group allegedly included JD Vance, CIA director John Ratcliffe, and then-national security adviser Mike Waltz. The report did not examine the actions of Hegseth, as the other officials do not work at the Department of Defense.
Signal is a commercially offered messaging app that was not approved for transmitting sensitive material.
Serious Threat to Troops
The inspector general's report found that the information 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.
Notably, the report acknowledged that Hegseth possessed the authority to downgrade the information he distributed, though it was not specified whether he actually did so.
Hegseth's Reaction
The informed individual said that Hegseth refused to be interviewed by the investigators. Instead, he provided a brief written statement.
In his response, Hegseth asserted he only shared information that would not have endangered personnel or compromised the mission. He added that he had the right to downgrade information and considered the investigation to be politically motivated.
Next Steps
The completed report has been shared with lawmakers. An unclassified version is anticipated to be made public later this week.
