A long-awaited Department of Defense review has determined that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth breached official protocols by disclosing secret information in a Signal messaging chat, as stated by a source familiar with the report.
Particulars of the Event
The chat group in question included particulars about a scheduled airstrike in Yemen targeting Houthi militants. This chat was revealed after a reporter for the Atlantic was included as a participant.
Other officials in the chat reportedly included JD Vance, CIA director John Ratcliffe, and former security advisor Mike Waltz. The investigation focused solely on the conduct of Hegseth, as the other participants are not employed at the Pentagon.
Signal is a publicly available messaging app that was not approved for transmitting sensitive material.
Potential Risk to Forces
The internal investigation found that the intelligence shared by Hegseth was secret and could have endangered the safety of US service members if it had been intercepted by a hostile nation.
Notably, the report acknowledged that Hegseth had the ability to declassify the information he distributed, though it was not specified whether he formally did so.
Secretary's Response
The source said that Hegseth declined an interview by the investigators. Instead, he submitted a short written response.
In his response, Hegseth claimed he only shared information that would not have endangered personnel or jeopardized the operation. He further stated that he had the right to declassify material and considered the investigation to be partisan.
Next Steps
The completed report has been shared with lawmakers. An unclassified version is expected to be made public in the coming days.
