A highly anticipated Pentagon report has determined that Pentagon chief Pete Hegseth violated departmental policies by disclosing secret information in a Signal messaging chat, as stated by a source familiar with the report.
Details of the Event
The online conversation in dispute contained particulars about a planned air attack in Yemen targeting Houthi militants. This discussion was revealed after a reporter for the Atlantic was included as a participant.
Other individuals in the group reportedly 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 officials are not employed at the Department of Defense.
Signal is a commercially offered messaging app that was not approved for handling classified information.
Serious Risk to Forces
The internal investigation determined 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 document also noted that Hegseth possessed the authority to declassify the material he distributed, though it was unclear whether he actually did so.
Hegseth's Reaction
The informed individual indicated that Hegseth refused to be interviewed by the investigators. Instead, he submitted a short written response.
In his statement, Hegseth asserted he only disclosed information that would not have endangered personnel or jeopardized the mission. He further stated that he possessed the authority to declassify material and considered the investigation to be partisan.
Next Steps
The completed report has been shared with lawmakers. An unclassified version is anticipated to be released in the coming days.
