A highly anticipated Pentagon review has determined that Pentagon chief Pete Hegseth violated official protocols by disclosing secret intelligence in a Signal messaging chat, as stated by a source familiar with the report.
Details of the Event
The chat group in question contained details about a scheduled airstrike in Yemen against Houthi militants. This chat was revealed after a reporter for the Atlantic was added as a member.
Other officials in the group reportedly included JD Vance, CIA director John Ratcliffe, and former security advisor Mike Waltz. The investigation focused solely on the actions of Hegseth, as the other officials do not work at the Department of Defense.
Signal is a commercially offered messaging app that was not authorized for handling sensitive material.
Potential Risk to Forces
The internal investigation determined that the intelligence circulated by Hegseth was classified and could have endangered the safety of US troops if it had been obtained by a foreign enemy force.
Notably, the report acknowledged that Hegseth possessed the authority to downgrade the material he shared, though it was not specified whether he actually exercised that authority.
Hegseth's Response
The informed individual said that Hegseth declined an interview by the inspector general. Instead, he provided a brief written statement.
In his response, Hegseth asserted he only disclosed information that would not have endangered personnel or jeopardized the mission. He added that he had the right to declassify material and viewed the investigation to be partisan.
Next Steps
The completed report has been shared with Congress. An publicly releasable copy is anticipated to be released in the coming days.
