A long-awaited Pentagon report has concluded that Pentagon chief Pete Hegseth violated departmental policies by sharing secret intelligence in a Signal messaging chat, according to a person briefed on the findings.
Particulars of the Event
The chat group in question included details about a scheduled airstrike in Yemen against Houthi fighters. This chat was revealed after a journalist for the Atlantic was added as a participant.
Other officials 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 conduct of Hegseth, as the other officials do not work at the Pentagon.
Signal is a publicly available communication application that was not authorized for handling classified information.
Potential Threat to Forces
The internal investigation found that the information shared by Hegseth was classified and could have endangered the safety of US service members if it had been obtained by a hostile nation.
Notably, the report acknowledged that Hegseth possessed the authority to downgrade the information he distributed, though it was unclear whether he actually exercised that authority.
Hegseth's Reaction
The informed individual said that Hegseth declined an interview by the inspector general. Instead, he provided a brief written statement.
In his response, Hegseth claimed he only disclosed information that would not have risked lives or compromised the mission. He added that he possessed the authority to downgrade information and viewed the investigation to be politically motivated.
Future Actions
The finalized investigation has been shared with Congress. An publicly releasable copy is anticipated to be released in the coming days.
