A long-awaited Pentagon report has concluded that Pentagon chief Pete Hegseth breached departmental policies by disclosing secret intelligence in a Signal messaging chat, according to a person briefed on the findings.
Particulars of the Event
The chat group in question included details about a planned air attack in Yemen against Houthi fighters. This chat was revealed after a reporter for the Atlantic was added as a participant.
Other individuals in the group reportedly included Senator JD Vance, CIA director John Ratcliffe, and former security advisor Mike Waltz. The report did not examine the conduct of Hegseth, as the other officials are not employed at the Pentagon.
Signal is a commercially offered messaging app that was not approved for handling classified information.
Serious Risk to Troops
The internal investigation determined that the intelligence circulated by Hegseth was classified and could have endangered the lives of US service members if it had been obtained by a foreign enemy force.
Notably, the document also noted that Hegseth possessed the authority to declassify the information he shared, though it was unclear whether he formally did so.
Secretary's Reaction
The informed individual said that Hegseth declined an interview by the investigators. Instead, he submitted a brief written statement.
In his response, 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.
Next Steps
The finalized investigation has been provided to lawmakers. An unclassified version is anticipated to be made public later this week.
