A highly anticipated Department of Defense review has determined that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth violated official protocols by sharing classified intelligence 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 against Houthi fighters. This discussion came to light after a journalist for the Atlantic was added as a participant.
Other officials in the chat reportedly included Senator JD Vance, CIA director John Ratcliffe, and then-national security adviser Mike Waltz. The investigation focused solely on the actions 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 handling classified information.
Serious Risk to Troops
The inspector general's report determined that the information shared by Hegseth was secret and could have endangered the lives of US troops if it had been obtained by a hostile nation.
However, the report acknowledged that Hegseth possessed the authority to downgrade the information he shared, though it was unclear whether he formally exercised that authority.
Secretary's Reaction
The informed individual indicated that Hegseth refused to be interviewed by the inspector general. Instead, he provided a brief written statement.
In his response, Hegseth asserted he only disclosed information that would not have endangered personnel or jeopardized the mission. He added that he had the right to declassify material and considered the inspector general to be partisan.
Future Actions
The completed report has been provided to Congress. An publicly releasable copy is anticipated to be made public in the coming days.
