A long-awaited Department of Defense report has concluded that Pentagon chief Pete Hegseth breached official protocols by sharing classified intelligence in a Signal messaging chat, according to a person briefed on the findings.
Details of the Incident
The chat group in dispute contained particulars about a planned air attack in Yemen targeting Houthi fighters. This discussion came to light after a journalist for the Atlantic was added as a participant.
Other individuals 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 are not employed at the Pentagon.
Signal is a commercially offered messaging app that was not authorized for handling sensitive material.
Serious Risk to Forces
The inspector general's report determined that the intelligence shared by Hegseth was secret and posed a risk to the lives of US service members if it had been obtained by a foreign enemy force.
Notably, the document also noted that Hegseth possessed the authority to declassify the material he shared, 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 short written response.
In his response, Hegseth claimed he only shared information that would not have risked lives or compromised the operation. He added that he had the right to downgrade information and considered the investigation to be partisan.
Next Steps
The finalized investigation has been shared with Congress. An unclassified version is anticipated to be released in the coming days.