A highly anticipated Pentagon report has determined that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth breached departmental policies by sharing secret information in a Signal messaging chat, as stated by a person briefed on the findings.
Particulars of the Event
The chat group in dispute included particulars about a planned air attack in Yemen targeting Houthi fighters. This discussion was revealed after a journalist for the Atlantic was included as a participant.
Other officials in the chat allegedly included Senator JD Vance, CIA director John Ratcliffe, and former security advisor Mike Waltz. The report did not examine the actions of Hegseth, as the other officials do not work at the Pentagon.
Signal is a commercially offered messaging app that was not approved for transmitting sensitive material.
Serious Risk to Troops
The internal investigation determined that the intelligence circulated by Hegseth was classified and posed a risk to the lives of US troops if it had been intercepted by a foreign enemy force.
However, the report also noted that Hegseth possessed the authority to declassify the material he distributed, though it was unclear whether he actually exercised that authority.
Secretary's Response
The source said that Hegseth refused to be interviewed by the investigators. Instead, he submitted a brief written statement.
In his statement, Hegseth claimed he only shared information that would not have risked lives or compromised the operation. He further stated that he had the right to declassify material and considered the investigation to be partisan.
Next Steps
The finalized investigation has been provided to Congress. An unclassified version is anticipated to be made public later this week.
