A long-awaited Pentagon review has determined that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth breached official protocols by sharing classified information in a Signal messaging chat, according to a source familiar with the report.
Details of the Incident
The chat group in question contained particulars about a scheduled airstrike in Yemen against Houthi militants. This chat came to light after a reporter for the Atlantic was included as a participant.
Other officials in the chat reportedly included Senator JD Vance, CIA director John Ratcliffe, and then-national security adviser Mike Waltz. The investigation focused solely on the conduct of Hegseth, as the other participants are not employed at the Department of Defense.
Signal is a commercially offered communication application that was not authorized for handling classified information.
Serious Threat to Forces
The inspector general's report found that the information shared by Hegseth was secret and could have endangered the lives of US troops if it had been intercepted by a hostile nation.
However, the report acknowledged that Hegseth possessed the authority to declassify the material he shared, though it was unclear whether he actually did so.
Hegseth's Response
The source indicated that Hegseth declined an interview by the inspector general. Instead, he submitted a short written response.
In his statement, Hegseth asserted he only disclosed details that would not have risked lives or compromised the operation. He further stated that he possessed the authority to downgrade information and viewed the investigation to be partisan.
Next Steps
The completed report has been shared with Congress. An unclassified version is expected to be made public later this week.
