A highly anticipated Pentagon review has determined that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth violated departmental policies by sharing secret information in a Signal messaging chat, as stated by a source familiar with the report.
Particulars of the Incident
The chat group in question contained details about a planned air attack in Yemen against Houthi militants. This discussion came to light after a reporter for the Atlantic was added as a member.
Other individuals in the group reportedly included Senator JD Vance, CIA director John Ratcliffe, and former security advisor Mike Waltz. The investigation did not examine the actions of Hegseth, as the other participants are not employed at the Department of Defense.
Signal is a publicly available communication application that was not authorized for handling classified information.
Serious Threat to Troops
The inspector general's report determined that the intelligence circulated by Hegseth was classified and could have endangered the lives of US service members if it had been intercepted by a foreign enemy force.
Notably, the document also noted that Hegseth possessed the authority to downgrade the material he distributed, though it was not specified whether he actually exercised that authority.
Hegseth's Reaction
The source said that Hegseth declined an interview by the inspector general. Instead, he submitted a short written response.
In his response, Hegseth asserted he only shared details that would not have risked lives or compromised the operation. He further stated that he possessed the authority to declassify material and considered the inspector general to be partisan.
Next Steps
The finalized investigation has been shared with Congress. An publicly releasable copy is expected to be released later this week.
