A long-awaited Pentagon review 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 Event
The online conversation in dispute contained particulars about a scheduled air attack in Yemen against Houthi militants. This discussion was revealed after a journalist for the Atlantic was included as a member.
Other individuals 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 conduct of Hegseth, as the other participants are not employed at the Pentagon.
Signal is a commercially offered communication application that was not approved for transmitting classified information.
Serious Risk to Forces
The inspector general's report found that the intelligence shared by Hegseth was secret and posed a risk to the safety of US service members if it had been intercepted by a hostile nation.
However, the document acknowledged that Hegseth possessed the authority to downgrade the material he shared, though it was unclear whether he formally exercised that authority.
Secretary's Response
The informed individual indicated that Hegseth refused to be interviewed by the investigators. Instead, he submitted a brief written statement.
In his statement, Hegseth claimed he only disclosed details that would not have endangered personnel or jeopardized the mission. He further stated that he had the right to downgrade information and considered the inspector general to be partisan.
Future Actions
The finalized investigation has been shared with lawmakers. An unclassified version is anticipated to be released later this week.
