A long-awaited Department of Defense report has determined that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth violated departmental policies by disclosing classified information in a Signal messaging chat, according to a source familiar with the report.
Details of the Event
The online conversation in question included details about a planned airstrike in Yemen targeting Houthi militants. This chat was revealed after a journalist for the Atlantic was included as a member.
Other individuals in the chat allegedly included JD Vance, CIA director John Ratcliffe, and then-national security adviser Mike Waltz. The report focused solely on the conduct of Hegseth, as the other officials do not work at the Pentagon.
Signal is a publicly available communication application that was not approved for transmitting sensitive material.
Serious Risk to Troops
The internal investigation determined that the intelligence shared by Hegseth was classified 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 possessed the authority to downgrade the material he shared, though it was unclear whether he actually exercised that authority.
Hegseth's Response
The informed individual said that Hegseth refused to be interviewed by the investigators. Instead, he provided a short written response.
In his statement, Hegseth claimed he only shared information that would not have risked lives or jeopardized the mission. He added that he possessed the authority to downgrade information and viewed the inspector general to be partisan.
Future Actions
The finalized investigation has been shared with lawmakers. An unclassified version is anticipated to be released in the coming days.
