A highly anticipated Department of Defense report has concluded that Pentagon chief Pete Hegseth breached official protocols by sharing secret intelligence in a private Signal group, according to a person briefed on the findings.
Details of the Event
The online conversation in question included details about a planned airstrike in Yemen against Houthi fighters. This discussion was revealed after a reporter for the Atlantic was included as a participant.
Other individuals in the chat reportedly included Senator JD Vance, CIA director John Ratcliffe, and then-national security adviser Mike Waltz. The investigation focused solely on the actions of Hegseth, as the other officials are not employed at the Department of Defense.
Signal is a publicly available communication application that was not approved for transmitting classified information.
Potential Risk to Forces
The inspector general's report determined that the information shared by Hegseth was classified and could have endangered the lives of US service members if it had been obtained by a hostile nation.
Notably, the document also noted that Hegseth had the ability to declassify the material he distributed, though it was not specified whether he formally did so.
Secretary's Reaction
The source indicated that Hegseth refused to be interviewed by the inspector general. Instead, he provided a brief written statement.
In his statement, Hegseth claimed he only shared details that would not have endangered personnel or jeopardized the operation. He further stated that he had the right to declassify material and considered the inspector general to be politically motivated.
Future Actions
The completed report has been shared with Congress. An unclassified version is expected to be released later this week.
