A long-awaited Pentagon report has determined that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth breached departmental policies by disclosing secret intelligence in a private Signal group, according to a source familiar with the report.
Details of the Event
The chat group in dispute contained particulars about a scheduled airstrike in Yemen against Houthi militants. This discussion came to light after a reporter for the Atlantic was included as a member.
Other individuals in the chat reportedly included JD Vance, CIA director John Ratcliffe, and former security advisor Mike Waltz. The investigation focused solely on the actions of Hegseth, as the other officials do not work at the Pentagon.
Signal is a publicly available communication application that was not authorized for transmitting sensitive material.
Potential Risk to Troops
The internal investigation determined that the intelligence shared by Hegseth was secret and posed a risk to the lives of US troops if it had been obtained by a hostile nation.
Notably, the document also noted that Hegseth possessed the authority to downgrade the material he distributed, though it was not specified whether he formally did so.
Secretary's Reaction
The informed individual indicated that Hegseth declined an interview by the investigators. Instead, he submitted a brief written statement.
In his statement, Hegseth claimed he only shared information that would not have risked lives or compromised the mission. He further stated that he had the right to downgrade information and viewed the inspector general to be partisan.
Next Steps
The finalized investigation has been provided to lawmakers. An publicly releasable copy is expected to be made public in the coming days.
