A long-awaited Department of Defense review has determined that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth breached official protocols by sharing classified information in a private Signal group, as stated by a person briefed on the findings.
Details of the Event
The chat group in question contained particulars about a planned airstrike in Yemen against Houthi militants. This discussion was revealed after a journalist for the Atlantic was included as a participant.
Other individuals in the chat reportedly included Senator JD Vance, CIA director John Ratcliffe, and then-national security adviser Mike Waltz. The investigation focused solely on the conduct of Hegseth, as the other officials do not work at the Department of Defense.
Signal is a commercially offered messaging app that was not approved for handling classified information.
Potential Risk to Forces
The internal investigation found that the intelligence circulated by Hegseth was classified and could have endangered the lives of US troops if it had been obtained by a hostile nation.
However, the report acknowledged that Hegseth had the ability to downgrade the material he shared, though it was unclear whether he formally did so.
Secretary's Response
The informed individual said that Hegseth declined an interview by the investigators. Instead, he submitted a short written response.
In his statement, Hegseth claimed he only disclosed details that would not have endangered personnel or compromised the operation. He further stated that he possessed the authority to downgrade information and considered the investigation to be politically motivated.
Next Steps
The finalized investigation has been shared with lawmakers. An publicly releasable copy is anticipated to be released later this week.
