A highly anticipated Pentagon review has determined that Pentagon chief Pete Hegseth breached official protocols by sharing classified intelligence in a private Signal group, as stated by a source familiar with the report.
Details of the Event
The chat group in dispute contained particulars about a scheduled air attack in Yemen targeting Houthi militants. This discussion was revealed after a reporter for the Atlantic was added as a participant.
Other officials in the chat allegedly included 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 Pentagon.
Signal is a commercially offered messaging app that was not authorized for transmitting classified information.
Potential Threat to Forces
The internal investigation found that the information shared by Hegseth was classified and posed a risk to the lives of US troops if it had been intercepted by a foreign enemy force.
Notably, the document also noted that Hegseth possessed the authority to downgrade the material he distributed, though it was not specified whether he actually exercised that authority.
Hegseth's Reaction
The source indicated that Hegseth refused to be interviewed by the inspector general. Instead, he provided a brief written statement.
In his statement, Hegseth claimed he only shared information that would not have risked lives or compromised the operation. He added that he had the right to declassify material and viewed the inspector general to be politically motivated.
Next Steps
The completed report has been provided to lawmakers. An unclassified version is expected to be made public in the coming days.
