Pentagon Report Concludes Defense Secretary Placed Troops in Jeopardy with Messaging App Conversation.
A highly anticipated Department of Defense review has determined that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth violated official protocols by sharing classified information in a Signal messaging chat, according to a source familiar with the report.
Particulars of the Event
The chat group in dispute contained details about a planned airstrike in Yemen against Houthi fighters. This chat came to light after a reporter for the Atlantic was added as a participant.
Other officials in the group reportedly included Senator JD Vance, CIA director John Ratcliffe, and former security advisor Mike Waltz. The investigation focused solely on the actions of Hegseth, as the other officials do not work at the Pentagon.
Signal is a publicly available messaging app that was not authorized for handling classified information.
Serious Risk to Forces
The internal investigation found that the intelligence circulated by Hegseth was secret and could have endangered the lives of US troops if it had been obtained by a foreign enemy force.
However, the document also noted that Hegseth had the ability to downgrade the material he distributed, though it was not specified whether he actually did so.
Hegseth's Reaction
The source said that Hegseth declined an interview by the inspector general. Instead, he provided a brief written statement.
In his response, Hegseth asserted he only disclosed information that would not have endangered personnel or compromised the operation. He added that he possessed the authority to downgrade information and considered the inspector general to be partisan.
Next Steps
The completed report has been provided to lawmakers. An publicly releasable copy is expected to be made public later this week.
