A long-awaited Pentagon report has concluded that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth violated official protocols by sharing secret intelligence in a private Signal group, according to a person briefed on the findings.
Details of the Event
The chat group in question contained particulars about a scheduled airstrike in Yemen targeting Houthi militants. This discussion was revealed after a journalist for the Atlantic was added as a participant.
Other individuals in the group allegedly included Senator JD Vance, CIA director John Ratcliffe, and former security advisor Mike Waltz. The report focused solely on the actions of Hegseth, as the other participants are not employed at the Pentagon.
Signal is a publicly available communication application that was not approved for transmitting sensitive material.
Serious Risk to Troops
The internal investigation found that the intelligence shared by Hegseth was secret and could have endangered the safety of US troops if it had been intercepted by a foreign enemy force.
However, the document acknowledged that Hegseth possessed the authority to declassify the information he shared, though it was not specified whether he formally exercised that authority.
Hegseth's Response
The source indicated that Hegseth declined an interview by the inspector general. Instead, he submitted a short written response.
In his statement, Hegseth asserted he only disclosed details that would not have endangered personnel or jeopardized the mission. He further stated that he had the right to declassify material and considered the inspector general to be politically motivated.
Next Steps
The completed report has been shared with lawmakers. An unclassified version is anticipated to be made public in the coming days.
