A highly anticipated Department of Defense review has determined that Pentagon chief Pete Hegseth violated departmental policies by disclosing secret information in a private Signal group, according to a person briefed on the findings.
Details of the Incident
The chat group in dispute included details about a scheduled air attack in Yemen targeting Houthi fighters. This discussion came to light after a journalist for the Atlantic was added as a member.
Other officials in the chat allegedly included JD Vance, CIA director John Ratcliffe, and former security advisor Mike Waltz. The report did not examine the actions of Hegseth, as the other participants are not employed at the Department of Defense.
Signal is a publicly available messaging app that was not approved for handling sensitive material.
Potential Risk to Troops
The internal investigation found that the information shared by Hegseth was classified and posed a risk to the safety of US service members if it had been intercepted by a foreign enemy force.
However, the report acknowledged that Hegseth possessed the authority to downgrade the information he shared, though it was not specified whether he formally exercised that authority.
Secretary's Reaction
The source indicated that Hegseth refused to be interviewed by the investigators. Instead, he submitted a short written response.
In his statement, Hegseth claimed he only shared details that would not have risked lives or compromised the operation. He added that he had the right to declassify material and considered the inspector general to be partisan.
Future Actions
The completed report has been shared with lawmakers. An unclassified version is expected to be made public later this week.
