A long-awaited Pentagon review has determined that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth breached departmental policies by sharing classified intelligence in a private Signal group, as stated by a source familiar with the report.
Particulars of the Event
The online conversation in question contained details about a planned airstrike in Yemen targeting Houthi militants. This discussion came to light after a journalist for the Atlantic was added as a participant.
Other officials in the chat reportedly included JD Vance, CIA director John Ratcliffe, and former security advisor Mike Waltz. The report did not examine the conduct of Hegseth, as the other participants do not work at the Pentagon.
Signal is a commercially offered communication application that was not approved for handling classified information.
Serious Risk to Troops
The inspector general's report determined 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 had the ability to declassify the information he shared, though it was not specified whether he formally exercised that authority.
Secretary's Response
The source said that Hegseth refused to be interviewed by the investigators. Instead, he provided a short written response.
In his statement, Hegseth asserted he only disclosed details that would not have risked lives or jeopardized the operation. He added that he possessed the authority to declassify material and viewed the investigation to be partisan.
Future Actions
The finalized investigation has been shared with Congress. An publicly releasable copy is anticipated to be released in the coming days.
