A long-awaited Pentagon review has concluded that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth violated official protocols by disclosing secret information in a private Signal group, according to a person briefed on the findings.
Details of the Event
The chat group in dispute contained particulars about a planned airstrike in Yemen against Houthi fighters. This discussion was revealed after a journalist for the Atlantic was included as a participant.
Other officials in the chat reportedly included 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 do not work at the Department of Defense.
Signal is a publicly available messaging app that was not approved for handling classified information.
Serious Risk to Forces
The internal investigation found that the information 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.
However, the report acknowledged that Hegseth possessed the authority to declassify the material he distributed, though it was not specified whether he actually did so.
Secretary's Response
The source indicated that Hegseth declined an interview by the investigators. Instead, he submitted a short written response.
In his response, Hegseth asserted he only shared information that would not have endangered personnel or jeopardized the mission. He further stated that he possessed the authority to downgrade information and considered the investigation to be politically motivated.
Next Steps
The completed report has been provided to Congress. An unclassified version is expected to be made public later this week.
