A long-awaited Pentagon report has determined that Pentagon chief Pete Hegseth breached departmental policies by sharing classified information in a private Signal group, as stated by a source familiar with the report.
Details of the Event
The online conversation in question contained particulars about a scheduled airstrike in Yemen targeting Houthi fighters. This chat came to light after a journalist for the Atlantic was added as a participant.
Other officials in the chat allegedly included Senator JD Vance, CIA director John Ratcliffe, and then-national security adviser Mike Waltz. The report focused solely on the actions of Hegseth, as the other officials are not employed at the Department of Defense.
Signal is a publicly available communication application that was not approved for handling sensitive material.
Serious Risk to Troops
The internal investigation determined that the intelligence circulated by Hegseth was secret and could have endangered the safety of US troops if it had been obtained by a hostile nation.
However, the report acknowledged that Hegseth possessed the authority to declassify the material he distributed, though it was unclear whether he actually exercised that authority.
Secretary's Reaction
The informed individual said that Hegseth refused to be interviewed by the investigators. Instead, he provided a brief written statement.
In his statement, Hegseth claimed he only shared details that would not have endangered personnel or compromised the operation. He added that he possessed the authority to declassify material and considered the investigation to be politically motivated.
Next Steps
The finalized investigation has been shared with Congress. An unclassified version is expected to be made public later this week.
