A long-awaited Department of Defense report has concluded that Pentagon chief Pete Hegseth violated departmental policies by sharing classified intelligence in a Signal messaging chat, according to a source familiar with the report.
Particulars of the Event
The chat group in dispute contained particulars about a scheduled air attack in Yemen targeting Houthi fighters. This discussion came to light after a journalist for the Atlantic was added as a participant.
Other individuals in the chat reportedly included Senator JD Vance, CIA director John Ratcliffe, and former security advisor 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 authorized for handling classified information.
Serious Threat to Troops
The inspector general's report determined that the information circulated by Hegseth was secret and could have endangered the lives of US service members if it had been obtained by a foreign enemy force.
However, the report also noted that Hegseth possessed the authority to declassify the information he distributed, though it was unclear whether he actually did so.
Hegseth's Response
The source indicated that Hegseth refused to be interviewed by the investigators. Instead, he submitted a brief written statement.
In his statement, Hegseth asserted he only shared information that would not have risked lives 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 completed report has been shared with lawmakers. An unclassified version is expected to be released in the coming days.
