A highly anticipated Pentagon report has determined that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth violated official protocols by disclosing classified information in a Signal messaging chat, as stated by a source familiar with the report.
Details of the Incident
The chat group in dispute included details about a scheduled airstrike in Yemen against Houthi fighters. This discussion was revealed after a reporter for the Atlantic was included as a member.
Other individuals in the group reportedly included Senator JD Vance, CIA director John Ratcliffe, and former security advisor Mike Waltz. The report did not examine the conduct of Hegseth, as the other officials are not employed at the Pentagon.
Signal is a publicly available messaging app that was not authorized for transmitting sensitive material.
Serious Risk to Forces
The inspector general's report determined that the information circulated by Hegseth was classified and could have endangered the lives of US troops if it had been intercepted by a hostile nation.
Notably, the document acknowledged that Hegseth possessed the authority to declassify the information he distributed, though it was unclear whether he formally did so.
Secretary's Response
The informed individual said that Hegseth declined an interview by the investigators. Instead, he provided a short written response.
In his response, Hegseth claimed he only shared information that would not have endangered personnel or compromised the mission. He further stated that he possessed the authority to declassify material and considered the inspector general to be partisan.
Next Steps
The completed report has been provided to lawmakers. An publicly releasable copy is expected to be made public in the coming days.
