Pentagon Investigation Finds Defense Secretary Put Military Personnel in Danger with Messaging App Chat.
A long-awaited Department of Defense report has concluded that Pentagon chief Pete Hegseth violated departmental policies by sharing secret information in a private Signal group, according to a person briefed on the findings.
Details of the Incident
The online conversation in dispute included details about a scheduled air attack in Yemen targeting Houthi militants. This chat was revealed after a reporter for the Atlantic was included as a participant.
Other officials in the group reportedly included JD Vance, CIA director John Ratcliffe, and then-national security adviser Mike Waltz. The report focused solely on the actions of Hegseth, as the other officials are not employed at the Pentagon.
Signal is a commercially offered messaging app that was not approved for handling classified information.
Potential Risk to Forces
The internal investigation found that the intelligence shared by Hegseth was classified and could have endangered the lives of US troops if it had been obtained by a hostile nation.
Notably, the report acknowledged that Hegseth had the ability to declassify the information he shared, though it was not specified whether he actually exercised that authority.
Hegseth's Reaction
The informed individual indicated that Hegseth refused to be interviewed by the inspector general. Instead, he submitted a short written response.
In his response, Hegseth asserted he only shared details that would not have endangered personnel or jeopardized the mission. He added that he possessed the authority to declassify material and viewed the investigation to be partisan.
Next Steps
The finalized investigation has been shared with lawmakers. An unclassified version is expected to be released later this week.
