A long-awaited Department of Defense report has concluded that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth breached official protocols by disclosing classified information in a Signal messaging chat, as stated by a person briefed on the findings.
Details of the Incident
The online conversation in dispute included particulars about a planned airstrike in Yemen against Houthi militants. This chat came to light after a journalist for the Atlantic was added as a participant.
Other officials in the chat allegedly included JD Vance, CIA director John Ratcliffe, and former security advisor Mike Waltz. The report focused solely on the actions of Hegseth, as the other officials are not employed at the Department of Defense.
Signal is a publicly available messaging app that was not authorized for transmitting sensitive material.
Potential Risk to Troops
The internal investigation found that the information circulated by Hegseth was classified and posed a risk to the safety of US service members if it had been obtained by a foreign enemy force.
However, the document also noted that Hegseth had the ability to declassify the material he shared, though it was unclear whether he formally exercised that authority.
Secretary's Reaction
The source indicated that Hegseth refused to be interviewed by the inspector general. Instead, he submitted a short written response.
In his statement, Hegseth claimed he only disclosed information that would not have endangered personnel or compromised the mission. He further stated that he possessed the authority to downgrade information and considered the investigation to be politically motivated.
Next Steps
The completed report has been provided to lawmakers. An unclassified version is anticipated to be made public later this week.
