A highly anticipated Department of Defense report has concluded that Pentagon chief Pete Hegseth breached departmental policies by sharing classified intelligence in a private Signal group, as stated by a person briefed on the findings.
Details of the Incident
The chat group in question contained details about a planned airstrike in Yemen targeting Houthi fighters. This discussion was revealed after a reporter for the Atlantic was added as a member.
Other individuals in the group allegedly included JD Vance, CIA director John Ratcliffe, and then-national security adviser 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 Forces
The inspector general's report determined that the intelligence circulated by Hegseth was secret and posed a risk to the lives of US service members if it had been obtained by a foreign enemy force.
However, the report also noted that Hegseth had the ability to declassify the material he shared, though it was not specified whether he formally did so.
Hegseth's Response
The source said that Hegseth refused to be interviewed by the inspector general. Instead, he submitted a brief written statement.
In his statement, Hegseth claimed he only disclosed information that would not have risked lives or jeopardized the operation. He added that he possessed the authority to declassify material and viewed the inspector general to be politically motivated.
Future Actions
The completed report has been shared with lawmakers. An publicly releasable copy is anticipated to be released in the coming days.
