A long-awaited Department of Defense report has determined that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth breached official protocols by sharing secret information in a Signal messaging chat, as stated by a source familiar with the report.
Details of the Incident
The online conversation in dispute included particulars about a scheduled air attack in Yemen against Houthi militants. This chat was revealed after a journalist for the Atlantic was included as a member.
Other officials in the chat allegedly included JD Vance, CIA director John Ratcliffe, and former security advisor Mike Waltz. The investigation did not examine the conduct of Hegseth, as the other participants are not employed at the Pentagon.
Signal is a publicly available communication application that was not approved for handling sensitive material.
Potential Risk to Troops
The internal investigation found that the intelligence shared by Hegseth was classified and posed a risk to the safety of US troops if it had been intercepted by a hostile nation.
Notably, the report also noted that Hegseth possessed the authority to downgrade the information he distributed, though it was not specified whether he actually did so.
Secretary's Response
The source indicated that Hegseth refused to be interviewed by the investigators. Instead, he provided a short written response.
In his statement, Hegseth claimed he only shared details that would not have endangered personnel or jeopardized the operation. He added that he possessed the authority to declassify material and considered the investigation to be partisan.
Next Steps
The completed report has been provided to lawmakers. An publicly releasable copy is anticipated to be made public later this week.
