A highly anticipated Department of Defense review has determined that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth violated departmental policies by disclosing secret intelligence in a private Signal group, according to a person briefed on the findings.
Details of the Incident
The chat group in dispute contained details about a planned air attack in Yemen against Houthi fighters. This chat was revealed after a journalist for the Atlantic was added as a member.
Other individuals in the chat allegedly included Senator JD Vance, CIA director John Ratcliffe, and former security advisor Mike Waltz. The investigation focused solely on the conduct of Hegseth, as the other officials are not employed at the Pentagon.
Signal is a commercially offered messaging app that was not approved for handling sensitive material.
Serious Risk to Troops
The internal investigation found that the information shared by Hegseth was classified and could have endangered the safety of US troops if it had been obtained by a hostile nation.
Notably, the report also noted that Hegseth had the ability to downgrade the material he distributed, though it was not specified whether he formally did so.
Secretary's Reaction
The source indicated that Hegseth declined an interview by the investigators. Instead, he submitted a short written response.
In his response, Hegseth claimed he only disclosed details that would not have risked lives or compromised the operation. He further stated that he possessed the authority to declassify material and viewed the investigation to be politically motivated.
Next Steps
The finalized investigation has been shared with Congress. An publicly releasable copy is expected to be made public in the coming days.
