A long-awaited Pentagon review has determined that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth breached departmental policies by disclosing secret information in a private Signal group, as stated by a source familiar with the report.
Details of the Event
The online conversation in question contained particulars about a scheduled airstrike in Yemen against Houthi militants. This chat was revealed after a reporter for the Atlantic was added as a participant.
Other individuals in the chat reportedly included Senator JD Vance, CIA director John Ratcliffe, and former security advisor Mike Waltz. The report focused solely on the conduct of Hegseth, as the other participants do not work at the Department of Defense.
Signal is a publicly available messaging app that was not authorized for handling sensitive material.
Serious Threat to Troops
The internal investigation determined that the intelligence shared by Hegseth was classified and could have endangered the lives of US service members if it had been obtained by a hostile nation.
Notably, the document also noted that Hegseth possessed the authority to downgrade the material he distributed, though it was not specified whether he actually did so.
Hegseth's Response
The informed individual indicated that Hegseth declined an interview by the investigators. Instead, he submitted a short written response.
In his response, Hegseth asserted 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 viewed the investigation to be politically motivated.
Future Actions
The completed report has been shared with Congress. An publicly releasable copy is anticipated to be released in the coming days.
