A long-awaited Department of Defense report has concluded that Pentagon chief Pete Hegseth breached departmental policies by sharing classified information in a private Signal group, according to a source familiar with the report.
Particulars of the Incident
The chat group in question contained particulars about a planned airstrike in Yemen targeting Houthi fighters. This discussion was revealed after a journalist for the Atlantic was added as a member.
Other officials in the group reportedly 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 officials are not employed at the Pentagon.
Signal is a publicly available communication application that was not authorized for handling classified information.
Serious Risk to Troops
The internal investigation found that the information shared by Hegseth was secret and posed a risk to the safety of US service members if it had been intercepted by a foreign enemy force.
Notably, the document acknowledged that Hegseth possessed the authority to declassify the information he distributed, though it was unclear whether he actually exercised that authority.
Secretary's Reaction
The informed individual indicated that Hegseth refused to be interviewed by the investigators. Instead, he provided a short written response.
In his statement, Hegseth claimed he only disclosed information that would not have endangered personnel or jeopardized the mission. He added that he had the right to downgrade information and considered the investigation to be politically motivated.
Future Actions
The completed report has been provided to Congress. An unclassified version is anticipated to be released later this week.
