A highly anticipated Pentagon report has determined that Pentagon chief Pete Hegseth breached official protocols by disclosing secret intelligence in a private Signal group, according to a person briefed on the findings.
Particulars of the Incident
The online conversation in question included particulars about a scheduled air attack in Yemen against Houthi fighters. This discussion came to light after a journalist for the Atlantic was included as a participant.
Other individuals in the chat reportedly included JD Vance, CIA director John Ratcliffe, and then-national security adviser Mike Waltz. The investigation did not examine the conduct of Hegseth, as the other officials are not employed at the Pentagon.
Signal is a publicly available messaging app that was not approved for handling classified information.
Serious Risk to Troops
The internal investigation found that the intelligence shared by Hegseth was secret and posed a risk to the safety of US troops if it had been obtained by a hostile nation.
However, the document acknowledged that Hegseth had the ability to downgrade the information he distributed, though it was not specified whether he formally did so.
Secretary's Reaction
The source 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 details that would not have endangered personnel or compromised the mission. He further stated that he possessed the authority to downgrade information and considered the investigation to be partisan.
Future Actions
The finalized investigation has been provided to Congress. An publicly releasable copy is anticipated to be released in the coming days.
