A highly anticipated Department of Defense review has concluded that Pentagon chief Pete Hegseth breached departmental policies by disclosing classified information in a private Signal group, according to a source familiar with the report.
Particulars of the Event
The online conversation in dispute included details about a planned air attack in Yemen against Houthi fighters. This chat was revealed after a reporter for the Atlantic was included as a participant.
Other officials in the group allegedly included Senator JD Vance, CIA director John Ratcliffe, and then-national security adviser Mike Waltz. The report focused solely on the conduct of Hegseth, as the other participants do not work at the Department of Defense.
Signal is a publicly available communication application that was not approved for transmitting classified information.
Serious Risk to Troops
The internal investigation determined that the information circulated by Hegseth was secret and could have endangered the lives of US troops if it had been obtained by a foreign enemy force.
However, the document also noted that Hegseth had the ability to declassify the material he distributed, though it was unclear whether he actually exercised that authority.
Hegseth's Response
The source said that Hegseth declined an interview by the investigators. Instead, he provided a short written response.
In his statement, Hegseth asserted he only shared information that would not have endangered personnel or compromised the mission. He added that he possessed the authority to declassify material and considered the investigation to be partisan.
Future Actions
The completed report has been provided to Congress. An unclassified version is anticipated to be released in the coming days.
