A long-awaited Department of Defense review has determined that Pentagon chief Pete Hegseth violated departmental policies by sharing classified information in a Signal messaging chat, according to a person briefed on the findings.
Particulars of the Event
The online conversation in dispute contained details about a scheduled air attack in Yemen targeting Houthi fighters. This chat came to light after a journalist for the Atlantic was added as a member.
Other officials in the chat allegedly included Senator JD Vance, CIA director John Ratcliffe, and then-national security adviser Mike Waltz. The report did not examine the conduct of Hegseth, as the other participants are not employed at the Department of Defense.
Signal is a commercially offered messaging app that was not approved for transmitting sensitive material.
Serious Threat to Troops
The inspector general's report found that the information shared by Hegseth was secret and could have endangered the lives of US service members if it had been obtained by a foreign enemy force.
Notably, the document also noted that Hegseth had the ability to downgrade the information he distributed, though it was not specified whether he formally did so.
Secretary's Reaction
The source said that Hegseth refused to be interviewed by the investigators. Instead, he submitted a brief written statement.
In his response, Hegseth claimed he only disclosed details that would not have endangered personnel or compromised the mission. He added that he had the right to downgrade information and considered the investigation to be partisan.
Next Steps
The completed report has been shared with Congress. An unclassified version is anticipated to be made public in the coming days.
