A long-awaited Pentagon report has concluded that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth breached departmental policies by sharing secret information in a Signal messaging chat, according to a source familiar with the report.
Details of the Incident
The chat group in question contained details about a planned airstrike in Yemen against Houthi fighters. This discussion came to light after a reporter for the Atlantic was included as a member.
Other individuals in the group allegedly 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 are not employed at the Department of Defense.
Signal is a commercially offered communication application that was not authorized for transmitting sensitive material.
Serious Risk to Forces
The inspector general's report found that the intelligence circulated by Hegseth was classified and could have endangered the lives of US troops if it had been intercepted by a foreign enemy force.
Notably, the report acknowledged that Hegseth had the ability to downgrade the material he distributed, though it was unclear whether he formally exercised that authority.
Secretary's Reaction
The source indicated that Hegseth declined an interview by the inspector general. Instead, he provided a short written response.
In his response, Hegseth asserted he only shared details that would not have risked lives or compromised the operation. He further stated that he had the right to downgrade information and considered the inspector general to be politically motivated.
Next Steps
The completed report has been shared with lawmakers. An unclassified version is expected to be made public later this week.
