A highly anticipated Pentagon report has determined that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth violated departmental policies by sharing classified intelligence in a private Signal group, as stated by a person briefed on the findings.
Particulars of the Event
The chat group in dispute contained details about a planned airstrike in Yemen targeting Houthi militants. This chat came to light after a journalist for the Atlantic was included as a member.
Other individuals in the chat allegedly included Senator JD Vance, CIA director John Ratcliffe, and then-national security adviser Mike Waltz. The investigation focused solely on the actions of Hegseth, as the other participants are not employed at the Department of Defense.
Signal is a commercially offered communication application that was not authorized for handling classified information.
Serious Threat to Forces
The internal investigation determined that the information circulated by Hegseth was secret and posed a risk to the lives of US troops if it had been obtained by a hostile nation.
However, the report also noted that Hegseth had the ability to downgrade the information he distributed, though it was not specified whether he formally exercised that authority.
Hegseth's Reaction
The source said that Hegseth declined an interview by the inspector general. Instead, he provided a brief written statement.
In his response, Hegseth claimed he only disclosed details that would not have endangered personnel or jeopardized the operation. He added that he possessed the authority to downgrade information and considered the inspector general to be politically motivated.
Future Actions
The finalized investigation has been shared with lawmakers. An unclassified version is anticipated to be released in the coming days.
