A highly anticipated Pentagon report has determined that Pentagon chief Pete Hegseth violated official protocols by sharing classified intelligence in a private Signal group, according to a person briefed on the findings.
Details of the Incident
The online conversation in dispute included details about a scheduled airstrike in Yemen against Houthi militants. This discussion came to light after a reporter for the Atlantic was added as a participant.
Other officials in the chat allegedly 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 do not work at the Department of Defense.
Signal is a publicly available communication application that was not approved for handling classified information.
Serious Threat to Troops
The inspector general's report found that the intelligence circulated by Hegseth was secret and could have endangered the lives of US troops if it had been intercepted by a foreign enemy force.
Notably, the document also noted that Hegseth possessed the authority to downgrade the information he shared, though it was unclear whether he formally exercised that authority.
Secretary's Response
The informed individual said that Hegseth declined an interview by the investigators. Instead, he provided a brief written statement.
In his response, Hegseth asserted he only disclosed details that would not have risked lives or compromised the operation. He added that he possessed the authority to declassify material and considered the inspector general to be politically motivated.
Future Actions
The finalized investigation has been provided to lawmakers. An unclassified version is expected to be made public later this week.
