A long-awaited Department of Defense review has determined that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth breached departmental policies by sharing secret information in a private Signal group, according to a source familiar with the report.
Details of the Incident
The online conversation in dispute contained particulars about a scheduled air attack in Yemen against Houthi fighters. This discussion was revealed after a reporter for the Atlantic was included as a member.
Other individuals in the chat allegedly included Senator JD Vance, CIA director John Ratcliffe, and former security advisor Mike Waltz. The investigation focused solely on the conduct of Hegseth, as the other officials are not employed at the Pentagon.
Signal is a commercially offered messaging app that was not approved for handling classified information.
Serious Risk to Forces
The inspector general's report found that the information shared by Hegseth was classified and posed a risk to the safety of US service members if it had been intercepted by a foreign enemy force.
Notably, the document acknowledged that Hegseth had the ability to downgrade the information he shared, though it was unclear whether he actually did so.
Secretary's Response
The informed individual said that Hegseth declined an interview by the inspector general. Instead, he provided a brief written statement.
In his statement, Hegseth claimed he only disclosed details that would not have endangered personnel or compromised the mission. He added that he possessed the authority to downgrade information and viewed the investigation to be politically motivated.
Next Steps
The completed report has been shared with Congress. An publicly releasable copy is anticipated to be made public later this week.
