A highly anticipated Pentagon review has determined that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth breached departmental policies by sharing secret information in a private Signal group, as stated by a source familiar with the report.
Particulars of the Event
The chat group in question included details about a scheduled air attack in Yemen against Houthi militants. This discussion came to light after a journalist for the Atlantic was added as a member.
Other officials in the chat reportedly included JD Vance, CIA director John Ratcliffe, and former security advisor Mike Waltz. The report did not examine the actions of Hegseth, as the other officials are not employed at the Pentagon.
Signal is a publicly available communication application that was not authorized for handling sensitive material.
Serious Risk to Forces
The inspector general's report determined that the information circulated by Hegseth was classified and posed a risk to the safety of US service members if it had been obtained by a foreign enemy force.
Notably, the report acknowledged that Hegseth possessed the authority to declassify the material he distributed, though it was unclear whether he actually did so.
Secretary's Reaction
The informed individual indicated that Hegseth declined an interview by the inspector general. Instead, he provided a short written response.
In his statement, Hegseth claimed he only shared information that would not have endangered personnel or compromised the operation. He further stated that he had the right to downgrade information and considered the inspector general to be politically motivated.
Future Actions
The finalized investigation has been shared with lawmakers. An unclassified version is anticipated to be released in the coming days.
