A long-awaited Department of Defense report has determined that Pentagon chief Pete Hegseth violated official protocols by disclosing secret information in a Signal messaging chat, as stated by a source familiar with the report.
Particulars of the Incident
The online conversation in dispute included particulars about a scheduled airstrike in Yemen targeting Houthi militants. This chat came to light after a reporter for the Atlantic was added as a participant.
Other individuals in the group allegedly included Senator JD Vance, CIA director John Ratcliffe, and then-national security adviser Mike Waltz. The report did not examine the actions of Hegseth, as the other officials do not work at the Department of Defense.
Signal is a publicly available messaging app that was not authorized for handling sensitive material.
Potential Risk to Troops
The internal investigation determined that the information circulated by Hegseth was classified and posed a risk to the safety of US service members if it had been obtained by a hostile nation.
Notably, the document acknowledged that Hegseth possessed the authority to downgrade the material he distributed, though it was unclear whether he actually did so.
Hegseth's Response
The informed individual said that Hegseth declined an interview by the inspector general. Instead, he provided a short written response.
In his response, Hegseth asserted he only shared information that would not have risked lives or jeopardized the operation. He added that he had the right to declassify material and viewed the inspector general to be partisan.
Future Actions
The completed report has been shared with Congress. An publicly releasable copy is anticipated to be made public in the coming days.
