A long-awaited Pentagon review has concluded that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth violated official protocols by sharing classified information in a private Signal group, as stated by a source familiar with the report.
Details of the Incident
The online conversation in dispute contained particulars about a planned airstrike in Yemen against Houthi fighters. This chat came to light after a reporter for the Atlantic was added as a member.
Other individuals in the group allegedly included Senator JD Vance, CIA director John Ratcliffe, and former security advisor Mike Waltz. The investigation did not examine the conduct of Hegseth, as the other officials do not work at the Pentagon.
Signal is a commercially offered communication application that was not authorized for handling sensitive material.
Serious Threat to Forces
The inspector general's report found that the information circulated by Hegseth was secret and posed a risk to the lives of US service members if it had been intercepted by a foreign enemy force.
Notably, the document acknowledged that Hegseth possessed the authority to downgrade the information he distributed, though it was not specified whether he actually did so.
Secretary's Reaction
The informed individual said that Hegseth refused to be interviewed by the investigators. Instead, he provided a short written response.
In his response, Hegseth claimed he only disclosed information that would not have endangered personnel or compromised the operation. He further stated that he possessed the authority to downgrade information and viewed the inspector general to be politically motivated.
Next Steps
The completed report has been provided to lawmakers. An unclassified version is anticipated to be released in the coming days.