A highly anticipated Pentagon report has concluded that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth violated departmental policies by disclosing classified information in a private Signal group, according to a source familiar with the report.
Details of the Incident
The chat group in dispute included particulars about a planned airstrike in Yemen targeting Houthi fighters. This chat came to light after a journalist for the Atlantic was added as a member.
Other individuals in the group reportedly included Senator JD Vance, CIA director John Ratcliffe, and then-national security adviser Mike Waltz. The investigation focused solely on the actions of Hegseth, as the other participants are not employed at the Pentagon.
Signal is a commercially offered communication application that was not authorized for handling sensitive material.
Potential Threat to Forces
The internal investigation found that the information circulated by Hegseth was classified and could have endangered the safety of US troops if it had been obtained by a foreign enemy force.
Notably, the document acknowledged that Hegseth had the ability to declassify the material he shared, though it was unclear whether he actually did so.
Hegseth's Reaction
The informed individual indicated that Hegseth refused to be interviewed by the investigators. Instead, he provided a brief written statement.
In his statement, Hegseth claimed he only disclosed details that would not have risked lives or compromised the mission. He further stated that he possessed the authority to declassify material and viewed the investigation to be politically motivated.
Future Actions
The completed report has been shared with lawmakers. An unclassified version is expected to be made public later this week.
