A highly anticipated Department of Defense report has concluded that Pentagon chief Pete Hegseth breached official protocols by disclosing secret information in a Signal messaging chat, as stated by a person briefed on the findings.
Details of the Event
The chat group in question included particulars about a scheduled air attack in Yemen against Houthi militants. This chat came to light after a journalist for the Atlantic was added as a member.
Other officials in the chat allegedly included JD Vance, CIA director John Ratcliffe, and then-national security adviser Mike Waltz. The report focused solely on the actions of Hegseth, as the other participants are not employed at the Department of Defense.
Signal is a commercially offered messaging app that was not approved for transmitting sensitive material.
Serious Risk to Troops
The inspector general's report determined that the information shared by Hegseth was classified and could have endangered the safety of US service members if it had been intercepted by a foreign enemy force.
However, the document also noted that Hegseth had the ability to downgrade the material he shared, though it was unclear whether he actually exercised that authority.
Secretary's Response
The informed individual indicated that Hegseth refused to be interviewed by the inspector general. Instead, he submitted a short written response.
In his response, Hegseth asserted he only disclosed information that would not have endangered personnel or compromised the mission. He added that he possessed the authority to declassify material and considered the inspector general to be politically motivated.
Future Actions
The completed report has been shared with lawmakers. An publicly releasable copy is anticipated to be made public later this week.
