A highly anticipated Pentagon review has concluded that Pentagon chief Pete Hegseth breached official protocols by disclosing classified information in a Signal messaging chat, according to a source familiar with the report.
Details of the Event
The online conversation in question included details about a planned airstrike in Yemen targeting Houthi militants. This chat came to light after a journalist for the Atlantic was added as a member.
Other individuals in the group allegedly included Senator JD Vance, CIA director John Ratcliffe, and then-national security adviser Mike Waltz. The investigation did not examine the actions of Hegseth, as the other participants do not work at the Department of Defense.
Signal is a publicly available messaging app that was not authorized for transmitting classified information.
Serious Threat to Troops
The internal investigation found that the information shared by Hegseth was secret and could have endangered the safety of US service members 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 not specified whether he actually did so.
Hegseth's Reaction
The informed individual said that Hegseth refused to be interviewed by the investigators. Instead, he provided a brief written statement.
In his statement, Hegseth claimed he only disclosed details that would not have endangered personnel or jeopardized the operation. He added that he possessed the authority to declassify material and viewed the inspector general to be politically motivated.
Future Actions
The finalized investigation has been shared with lawmakers. An publicly releasable copy is anticipated to be released in the coming days.
