A highly anticipated Department of Defense review has determined that Pentagon chief Pete Hegseth violated official protocols by disclosing classified information in a Signal messaging chat, according to a person briefed on the findings.
Particulars of the Event
The chat group in question contained particulars about a scheduled air attack in Yemen against Houthi militants. This discussion came to light after a journalist for the Atlantic was included as a participant.
Other officials in the group allegedly included Senator JD Vance, CIA director John Ratcliffe, and then-national security adviser Mike Waltz. The report focused solely on the conduct of Hegseth, as the other officials are not employed at the Department of Defense.
Signal is a commercially offered messaging app that was not approved for handling classified information.
Serious Risk to Forces
The internal investigation found that the intelligence circulated by Hegseth was classified and could have endangered the safety of US service members if it had been obtained by a hostile nation.
Notably, the document acknowledged that Hegseth had the ability to downgrade the material he shared, though it was unclear whether he formally did so.
Secretary's Response
The source indicated that Hegseth declined an interview by the inspector general. Instead, he submitted a brief written statement.
In his response, Hegseth asserted he only shared details that would not have endangered personnel or jeopardized the operation. He added that he possessed the authority to downgrade information and considered the investigation to be politically motivated.
Next Steps
The completed report has been shared with lawmakers. An unclassified version is expected to be made public in the coming days.
