A long-awaited Pentagon review has determined that Pentagon chief Pete Hegseth violated departmental policies by disclosing secret information in a Signal messaging chat, according to a source familiar with the report.
Details of the Event
The online conversation in question contained particulars about a planned air attack in Yemen targeting Houthi fighters. This discussion was revealed after a journalist for the Atlantic was included as a participant.
Other individuals in the chat reportedly included Senator JD Vance, CIA director John Ratcliffe, and former security advisor Mike Waltz. The report focused solely on the conduct of Hegseth, as the other participants do not work at the Department of Defense.
Signal is a commercially offered communication application that was not approved for handling classified information.
Potential Risk to Forces
The internal investigation determined that the information circulated by Hegseth was secret and could have endangered the safety of US service members if it had been obtained by a foreign enemy force.
Notably, the document also noted that Hegseth had the ability to downgrade the information he distributed, though it was unclear whether he formally exercised that authority.
Hegseth's Reaction
The source said that Hegseth refused to be interviewed by the inspector general. Instead, he submitted a brief written statement.
In his response, Hegseth claimed he only shared information that would not have risked lives or jeopardized the operation. He further stated that he had the right to downgrade information and viewed the inspector general to be partisan.
Future Actions
The finalized investigation has been provided to lawmakers. An unclassified version is expected to be released later this week.
