Pentagon Report Concludes Hegseth Put Military Personnel in Danger with Messaging App Chat.
A highly anticipated Pentagon report has determined that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth violated departmental policies by sharing classified intelligence in a private Signal group, according to a source familiar with the report.
Particulars of the Incident
The online conversation in question included particulars about a planned air attack in Yemen targeting Houthi fighters. This chat came to light after a journalist for the Atlantic was included as a participant.
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 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 internal investigation found that the information shared by Hegseth was secret and could have endangered the safety of US service members if it had been obtained by a hostile nation.
Notably, the document also noted that Hegseth had the ability to declassify the material he distributed, though it was not specified whether he actually did so.
Secretary'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 asserted he only disclosed information that would not have risked lives or jeopardized the operation. He further stated that he possessed the authority to declassify material and viewed the investigation to be partisan.
Future Actions
The completed report has been shared with Congress. An unclassified version is expected to be released in the coming days.
