A long-awaited Pentagon report has concluded that Pentagon chief Pete Hegseth breached departmental policies by sharing secret intelligence in a Signal messaging chat, as stated by a source familiar with the report.
Particulars of the Incident
The online conversation in question contained particulars about a scheduled airstrike 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 reportedly included Senator 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 Department of Defense.
Signal is a commercially offered communication application that was not approved for handling classified information.
Potential Risk to Troops
The inspector general's report determined that the information shared by Hegseth was secret and posed a risk to the safety of US service members if it had been obtained by a hostile nation.
However, the report also noted that Hegseth possessed the authority to declassify the information he distributed, though it was unclear whether he formally exercised that authority.
Hegseth's Response
The informed individual indicated that Hegseth declined an interview by the investigators. Instead, he provided a short written response.
In his statement, Hegseth asserted he only disclosed details that would not have risked lives or jeopardized the operation. He added that he had the right to downgrade information and considered the investigation to be politically motivated.
Future Actions
The completed report has been shared with Congress. An unclassified version is anticipated to be released in the coming days.
