A highly anticipated Pentagon review has concluded that Pentagon chief Pete Hegseth breached departmental policies by disclosing classified intelligence in a Signal messaging chat, as stated by a person briefed on the findings.
Particulars of the Incident
The chat group in dispute included particulars about a planned airstrike in Yemen targeting Houthi fighters. This chat was revealed after a reporter for the Atlantic was included as a member.
Other individuals in the chat allegedly included JD Vance, CIA director John Ratcliffe, and former security advisor Mike Waltz. The investigation did not examine the actions of Hegseth, as the other officials are not employed at the Pentagon.
Signal is a commercially offered communication application that was not approved for handling classified information.
Serious Threat to Troops
The internal investigation found that the information shared by Hegseth was classified and posed a risk to the lives of US service members if it had been intercepted by a hostile nation.
However, the document also noted that Hegseth possessed the authority to downgrade the material he shared, though it was unclear whether he formally exercised that authority.
Secretary's Response
The source 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 disclosed details that would not have risked lives or jeopardized the operation. He further stated that he possessed the authority to downgrade information and considered the investigation to be partisan.
Next Steps
The finalized investigation has been shared with Congress. An unclassified version is anticipated to be made public later this week.
