A highly anticipated Pentagon review has determined that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth violated departmental policies by sharing classified information in a private Signal group, according to a source familiar with the report.
Particulars of the Incident
The online conversation in dispute contained details about a planned air attack 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 officials are not employed at the Pentagon.
Signal is a commercially offered messaging app that was not approved for transmitting classified information.
Potential Threat to Forces
The internal investigation determined that the intelligence shared by Hegseth was classified and posed a risk to the lives of US troops if it had been intercepted by a hostile nation.
However, the document also noted that Hegseth had the ability to declassify the material he shared, though it was not specified whether he formally exercised that authority.
Hegseth's Reaction
The informed individual said that Hegseth refused to be interviewed by the inspector general. Instead, he provided a short written response.
In his statement, Hegseth asserted he only shared information that would not have endangered personnel or compromised 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 provided to Congress. An publicly releasable copy is anticipated to be made public in the coming days.
