A long-awaited Pentagon review has concluded that Pentagon chief Pete Hegseth violated departmental policies by sharing classified information in a Signal messaging chat, according to a person briefed on the findings.
Particulars of the Incident
The online conversation in question included particulars about a planned air attack in Yemen against Houthi fighters. This chat came to light after a reporter for the Atlantic was added as a member.
Other individuals in the chat reportedly included JD Vance, CIA director John Ratcliffe, and then-national security adviser Mike Waltz. The report focused solely on the actions of Hegseth, as the other participants do not work at the Department of Defense.
Signal is a commercially offered communication application that was not approved for handling sensitive material.
Potential Risk to Troops
The inspector general's report found that the information circulated by Hegseth was secret and posed a risk to the safety of US service members if it had been intercepted by a hostile nation.
Notably, the document acknowledged that Hegseth possessed the authority to declassify the material he shared, though it was not specified whether he actually exercised that authority.
Hegseth's Response
The informed individual 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 endangered personnel or compromised the mission. He added that he had the right to declassify material and considered the inspector general to be politically motivated.
Future Actions
The finalized investigation has been shared with Congress. An publicly releasable copy is anticipated to be made public in the coming days.
