Pentagon Report Finds Defense Secretary Placed Troops in Jeopardy with Messaging App Chat.
A highly anticipated Department of Defense review has concluded that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth breached official protocols by sharing classified 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 particulars about a planned air attack in Yemen targeting Houthi militants. This discussion was revealed after a journalist for the Atlantic was added as a member.
Other individuals in the group 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 officials are not employed at the Pentagon.
Signal is a publicly available messaging app that was not authorized for handling classified information.
Serious Threat to Forces
The internal investigation determined that the information shared by Hegseth was secret and could have endangered the safety of US service members if it had been intercepted by a hostile nation.
However, the report also noted that Hegseth possessed the authority to declassify the information he distributed, though it was unclear whether he actually did so.
Secretary's Reaction
The source said that Hegseth refused to be interviewed by the inspector general. Instead, he provided a short written response.
In his statement, Hegseth claimed he only shared information that would not have endangered personnel or jeopardized the operation. He further stated that he had the right to declassify material and viewed the investigation to be partisan.
Next Steps
The finalized investigation has been shared with lawmakers. An unclassified version is expected to be made public later this week.
