A long-awaited Department of Defense review has determined that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth breached official protocols by sharing classified information in a Signal messaging chat, according to a source familiar with the report.
Details of the Event
The chat group in dispute contained details about a scheduled air attack in Yemen against Houthi fighters. This discussion came to light after a journalist for the Atlantic was added as a member.
Other individuals in the chat reportedly included JD Vance, CIA director John Ratcliffe, and former security advisor Mike Waltz. The investigation did not examine the actions of Hegseth, as the other participants are not employed at the Pentagon.
Signal is a commercially offered messaging app that was not approved for handling classified information.
Serious Risk to Forces
The inspector general's report determined that the intelligence shared by Hegseth was secret and could have endangered the safety of US troops if it had been intercepted by a hostile nation.
However, the report also noted that Hegseth possessed the authority to declassify the material he distributed, though it was not specified whether he actually did so.
Hegseth's Reaction
The informed individual indicated that Hegseth declined an interview by the investigators. Instead, he submitted 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 downgrade information and viewed the investigation to be partisan.
Next Steps
The finalized investigation has been provided to Congress. An publicly releasable copy is anticipated to be made public in the coming days.
