A long-awaited Pentagon review has determined that Pentagon chief Pete Hegseth violated official protocols by sharing classified intelligence in a Signal messaging chat, according to a person briefed on the findings.
Particulars of the Event
The chat group in question contained particulars about a scheduled airstrike in Yemen targeting Houthi fighters. This chat came to light after a reporter for the Atlantic was added as a member.
Other officials in the group 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 Department of Defense.
Signal is a publicly available messaging app that was not authorized for transmitting classified information.
Potential Threat to Forces
The inspector general's report determined that the information circulated by Hegseth was classified and posed a risk to the lives of US troops if it had been obtained by a foreign enemy force.
However, the document acknowledged that Hegseth possessed the authority to downgrade the material he distributed, though it was unclear whether he actually exercised that authority.
Hegseth's Reaction
The source indicated that Hegseth declined an interview by the inspector general. Instead, he provided a brief written statement.
In his response, Hegseth asserted he only shared information that would not have risked lives or jeopardized the operation. He added that he had the right to downgrade information and considered the inspector general to be partisan.
Future Actions
The completed report has been shared with lawmakers. An unclassified version is anticipated to be released later this week.
