A highly anticipated Department of Defense review has concluded that Pentagon chief Pete Hegseth violated departmental policies by sharing classified information in a Signal messaging chat, according to a source familiar with the report.
Details of the Event
The chat group in question included particulars about a planned air attack in Yemen targeting Houthi fighters. This chat came to light after a reporter for the Atlantic was added as a member.
Other individuals in the chat reportedly included Senator JD Vance, CIA director John Ratcliffe, and former security advisor Mike Waltz. The report did not examine the actions of Hegseth, as the other officials are not employed at the Pentagon.
Signal is a commercially offered messaging app that was not authorized for transmitting sensitive material.
Serious Threat to Troops
The inspector general's report determined that the intelligence shared by Hegseth was classified and posed a risk to the lives of US service members if it had been intercepted by a hostile nation.
Notably, the document acknowledged that Hegseth had the ability to declassify the information he shared, though it was unclear whether he actually did so.
Secretary's Response
The source indicated that Hegseth declined an interview by the inspector general. Instead, he provided a short written response.
In his statement, Hegseth asserted he only shared details that would not have endangered personnel or compromised the mission. He added that he possessed the authority to downgrade information and considered the inspector general to be politically motivated.
Next Steps
The completed report has been provided to Congress. An unclassified version is expected to be released later this week.
