A long-awaited Department of Defense report has concluded that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth breached official protocols by disclosing classified intelligence in a Signal messaging chat, as stated by a source familiar with the report.
Details of the Event
The online conversation in question included details about a planned air attack in Yemen targeting Houthi militants. This discussion came to light after a reporter for the Atlantic was included as a participant.
Other individuals in the chat reportedly included JD Vance, CIA director John Ratcliffe, and then-national security adviser Mike Waltz. The investigation did not examine the actions of Hegseth, as the other participants do not work at the Pentagon.
Signal is a commercially offered messaging app that was not approved for handling sensitive material.
Potential Risk to Troops
The inspector general's report found 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 acknowledged that Hegseth had the ability to downgrade the material he shared, though it was unclear whether he formally did so.
Hegseth's Response
The informed individual indicated 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 risked lives or compromised the mission. He added that he possessed the authority to declassify material and viewed the investigation to be partisan.
Future Actions
The finalized investigation has been shared with lawmakers. An publicly releasable copy is anticipated to be released in the coming days.
