A highly anticipated Pentagon report has determined that Pentagon chief Pete Hegseth violated official protocols by sharing classified information in a private Signal group, according to a person briefed on the findings.
Details of the Event
The online conversation in question contained details about a scheduled airstrike in Yemen targeting Houthi fighters. This discussion came to light after a journalist for the Atlantic was included as a participant.
Other individuals in the chat allegedly included JD Vance, CIA director John Ratcliffe, and former security advisor Mike Waltz. The report did not examine the actions of Hegseth, as the other participants do not work at the Pentagon.
Signal is a publicly available communication application that was not authorized for handling sensitive material.
Potential Risk to Forces
The inspector general's report found that the intelligence circulated by Hegseth was secret and posed a risk to the lives of US service members if it had been intercepted by a foreign enemy force.
However, the document also noted that Hegseth possessed the authority to downgrade the information he distributed, though it was unclear whether he formally did so.
Secretary's Reaction
The source indicated that Hegseth declined an interview by the inspector general. Instead, he submitted a brief written statement.
In his response, Hegseth asserted he only shared information that would not have risked lives or jeopardized the operation. He further stated that he possessed the authority to downgrade information and viewed the inspector general to be partisan.
Next Steps
The completed report has been provided to lawmakers. An publicly releasable copy is anticipated to be released in the coming days.
