A long-awaited Pentagon report has concluded that Pentagon chief Pete Hegseth breached official protocols by disclosing classified intelligence in a Signal messaging chat, according to a person briefed on the findings.
Details of the Incident
The online conversation in question contained particulars about a planned air attack in Yemen targeting Houthi militants. 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 investigation focused solely on the conduct of Hegseth, as the other participants do not work at the Pentagon.
Signal is a commercially offered communication application that was not approved for handling classified information.
Serious Threat to Forces
The internal investigation determined that the intelligence shared by Hegseth was secret and could have endangered the safety of US troops if it had been obtained by a foreign enemy force.
Notably, the report also noted that Hegseth possessed the authority to downgrade the information he shared, though it was not specified whether he formally exercised that authority.
Hegseth's Response
The source indicated that Hegseth declined an interview by the inspector general. Instead, he submitted a short written response.
In his response, Hegseth asserted he only disclosed details that would not have endangered personnel or compromised the mission. He further stated that he possessed the authority to declassify material and considered the investigation to be partisan.
Next Steps
The completed report has been shared with Congress. An unclassified version is expected to be made public later this week.
