A highly anticipated Pentagon report has determined that Pentagon chief Pete Hegseth breached official protocols by disclosing secret intelligence in a private Signal group, as stated by a person briefed on the findings.
Particulars of the Incident
The chat group in question included particulars about a planned air attack in Yemen against Houthi fighters. This chat was revealed after a reporter for the Atlantic was included as a member.
Other officials in the group allegedly included Senator JD Vance, CIA director John Ratcliffe, and former security advisor Mike Waltz. The investigation did not examine the actions of Hegseth, as the other participants do not work at the Pentagon.
Signal is a commercially offered communication application that was not approved for handling sensitive material.
Potential Threat to Troops
The internal investigation determined that the information shared by Hegseth was classified and posed a risk to the lives of US service members if it had been obtained by a foreign enemy force.
However, the report also noted that Hegseth possessed the authority to downgrade the material he distributed, though it was unclear whether he formally did so.
Hegseth's Response
The source indicated that Hegseth declined an interview by the inspector general. Instead, he submitted a brief written statement.
In his response, Hegseth claimed he only shared information that would not have endangered personnel or jeopardized the mission. He added that he had the right to declassify material and viewed the inspector general to be partisan.
Future Actions
The finalized investigation has been shared with lawmakers. An unclassified version is expected to be made public in the coming days.
