A long-awaited Pentagon review has concluded that Pentagon chief Pete Hegseth violated official protocols by sharing secret intelligence in a Signal messaging chat, as stated by a source familiar with the report.
Particulars of the Incident
The chat group in dispute included details about a scheduled airstrike in Yemen targeting Houthi fighters. This chat came to light after a reporter for the Atlantic was included as a participant.
Other individuals in the group allegedly included Senator JD Vance, CIA director John Ratcliffe, and former security advisor Mike Waltz. The investigation did not examine the conduct of Hegseth, as the other officials are not employed at the Pentagon.
Signal is a publicly available communication application that was not authorized for handling classified information.
Potential Risk to Forces
The inspector general's report found that the intelligence shared by Hegseth was classified and posed a risk to the lives of US service members if it had been obtained by a hostile nation.
Notably, the report also noted that Hegseth possessed the authority to declassify the information he distributed, though it was not specified whether he actually exercised that authority.
Secretary's Response
The informed individual said that Hegseth declined an interview by the investigators. Instead, he submitted a brief written statement.
In his statement, Hegseth claimed he only disclosed information that would not have risked lives or compromised the operation. He added that he had the right to declassify material and viewed the inspector general to be partisan.
Future Actions
The finalized investigation has been shared with Congress. An unclassified version is anticipated to be made public later this week.
