A highly anticipated Department of Defense report has concluded that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth violated official protocols by sharing secret intelligence in a Signal messaging chat, according to a person briefed on the findings.
Particulars of the Incident
The online conversation in dispute contained particulars about a planned airstrike in Yemen against Houthi militants. This discussion came to light after a reporter for the Atlantic was included as a member.
Other officials in the chat 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 commercially offered communication application that was not authorized for transmitting sensitive material.
Serious Risk to Forces
The internal investigation found that the information shared by Hegseth was secret and could have endangered the safety of US troops if it had been obtained by a hostile nation.
Notably, the report also noted that Hegseth had the ability to downgrade the material he shared, though it was not specified whether he formally did so.
Secretary's Response
The informed individual indicated that Hegseth declined an interview by the investigators. Instead, he provided a short written response.
In his response, Hegseth claimed he only shared information that would not have risked lives or compromised the mission. He added that he possessed the authority to declassify material and viewed the inspector general to be partisan.
Future Actions
The completed report has been provided to lawmakers. An publicly releasable copy is anticipated to be made public later this week.
