A long-awaited Pentagon review has concluded that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth violated official protocols by sharing secret information in a Signal messaging chat, according to a source familiar with the report.
Details of the Event
The chat group in dispute included details about a scheduled air attack in Yemen against Houthi fighters. This chat was revealed after a journalist for the Atlantic was included as a member.
Other officials in the group allegedly included Senator JD Vance, CIA director John Ratcliffe, and former security advisor Mike Waltz. The investigation focused solely on the actions of Hegseth, as the other officials do not work at the Pentagon.
Signal is a publicly available communication application that was not approved for handling classified information.
Potential Threat to Forces
The inspector general's report found that the intelligence circulated by Hegseth was classified and could have endangered the safety of US service members if it had been intercepted by a foreign enemy force.
However, the document also noted that Hegseth possessed the authority to downgrade the information he shared, though it was not specified whether he formally did so.
Secretary's Response
The source indicated that Hegseth refused to be interviewed by the inspector general. Instead, he provided a short written response.
In his response, Hegseth claimed he only disclosed information that would not have endangered personnel or compromised the operation. He added that he had the right to downgrade information and considered the investigation to be politically motivated.
Future Actions
The finalized investigation has been provided to Congress. An publicly releasable copy is anticipated to be made public later this week.
