A long-awaited Department of Defense report has concluded that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth violated official protocols by sharing secret intelligence in a Signal messaging chat, as stated by a person briefed on the findings.
Details of the Event
The online conversation in question contained details about a scheduled air attack in Yemen targeting Houthi fighters. This chat came to light after a reporter for the Atlantic was included as a member.
Other individuals in the chat allegedly included JD Vance, CIA director John Ratcliffe, and then-national security adviser Mike Waltz. The report did not examine the actions of Hegseth, as the other officials are not employed at the Pentagon.
Signal is a publicly available communication application that was not approved for handling classified information.
Potential Threat to Troops
The internal investigation determined that the intelligence circulated by Hegseth was classified 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 shared, though it was unclear whether he actually did so.
Hegseth's Response
The informed individual said that Hegseth declined an interview by the inspector general. Instead, he submitted a brief written statement.
In his response, Hegseth claimed he only disclosed information that would not have risked lives or jeopardized the mission. He added that he possessed the authority to downgrade information and viewed the inspector general to be politically motivated.
Next Steps
The finalized investigation has been provided to lawmakers. An publicly releasable copy is expected to be released later this week.
