A highly anticipated Department of Defense review has concluded that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth breached official protocols by disclosing classified intelligence in a Signal messaging chat, according to a person briefed on the findings.
Details of the Event
The chat group in question contained particulars about a planned airstrike in Yemen against Houthi fighters. This discussion came to light after a journalist for the Atlantic was included as a participant.
Other officials in the chat reportedly included JD Vance, CIA director John Ratcliffe, and then-national security adviser Mike Waltz. The report did not examine the conduct of Hegseth, as the other officials are not employed at the Department of Defense.
Signal is a publicly available communication application that was not authorized for transmitting sensitive material.
Serious Threat to Forces
The internal investigation found that the information shared by Hegseth was classified and posed a risk to the lives of US troops if it had been intercepted by a hostile nation.
Notably, the report acknowledged that Hegseth had the ability to downgrade the material he shared, though it was unclear whether he formally did so.
Secretary's Response
The informed individual said that Hegseth declined an interview by the inspector general. Instead, he provided a brief written statement.
In his statement, Hegseth asserted 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 viewed the investigation to be politically motivated.
Future Actions
The finalized investigation has been provided to Congress. An publicly releasable copy is expected to be released later this week.
