A long-awaited Pentagon report has concluded that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth breached departmental policies by sharing secret intelligence in a Signal messaging chat, as stated by a person briefed on the findings.
Particulars of the Event
The chat group in question contained particulars about a scheduled air attack in Yemen against Houthi fighters. This chat came to light 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 investigation focused solely on the conduct of Hegseth, as the other officials do not work at the Department of Defense.
Signal is a publicly available communication application that was not authorized for handling classified information.
Serious Risk to Forces
The inspector general's report found that the intelligence circulated by Hegseth was secret and posed a risk to the safety of US troops if it had been intercepted by a hostile nation.
Notably, the document also noted that Hegseth possessed the authority to downgrade the information he distributed, though it was unclear whether he actually did so.
Hegseth's Reaction
The informed individual indicated that Hegseth declined an interview by the investigators. Instead, he provided a short written response.
In his response, Hegseth asserted he only disclosed information 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 politically motivated.
Future Actions
The finalized investigation has been provided to Congress. An unclassified version is expected to be released later this week.
