Pentagon Report Finds Defense Secretary Put Troops in Jeopardy with Signal Chat.
A long-awaited Pentagon report has determined that Pentagon chief Pete Hegseth breached departmental policies by sharing secret intelligence in a private Signal group, as stated by a source familiar with the report.
Details of the Incident
The online conversation in dispute included particulars about a scheduled airstrike in Yemen against Houthi fighters. This chat came to light after a journalist for the Atlantic was added as a member.
Other individuals in the group allegedly included Senator JD Vance, CIA director John Ratcliffe, and then-national security adviser Mike Waltz. The investigation did not examine the actions of Hegseth, as the other participants are not employed at the Department of Defense.
Signal is a commercially offered messaging app that was not approved for handling sensitive material.
Serious Risk to Troops
The inspector general's report determined that the intelligence shared by Hegseth was secret and could have endangered the lives of US troops if it had been intercepted by a foreign enemy force.
However, the document also noted that Hegseth had the ability to declassify the material he distributed, though it was unclear whether he formally exercised that authority.
Hegseth's Reaction
The source said that Hegseth refused to be interviewed by the investigators. Instead, he provided a short written response.
In his statement, Hegseth claimed he only disclosed details that would not have endangered personnel or compromised the operation. He added that he had the right to downgrade information and viewed the inspector general to be politically motivated.
Next Steps
The finalized investigation has been provided to Congress. An unclassified version is anticipated to be released later this week.
