A highly anticipated Department of Defense review has determined that Pentagon chief Pete Hegseth violated official protocols by sharing secret intelligence in a private Signal group, as stated by a source familiar with the report.
Particulars of the Incident
The online conversation in question included details about a planned air attack in Yemen targeting Houthi fighters. This discussion came to light after a journalist for the Atlantic was included as a participant.
Other officials in the chat reportedly included JD Vance, CIA director John Ratcliffe, and then-national security adviser Mike Waltz. The report did not examine the conduct of Hegseth, as the other officials do not work at the Department of Defense.
Signal is a publicly available communication application that was not authorized for handling sensitive material.
Serious Threat to Forces
The inspector general's report found that the intelligence shared by Hegseth was secret and could have endangered the safety of US troops if it had been intercepted by a foreign enemy force.
However, the report also noted that Hegseth had the ability to downgrade the information he distributed, though it was unclear whether he actually did so.
Hegseth's Response
The source said that Hegseth declined an interview by the inspector general. Instead, he provided a short written response.
In his statement, Hegseth asserted he only shared information that would not have endangered personnel or jeopardized the operation. He further stated that he possessed the authority to downgrade information and viewed the investigation to be partisan.
Future Actions
The finalized investigation has been shared with Congress. An unclassified version is anticipated to be released later this week.
