A long-awaited Department of Defense report has concluded that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth breached departmental policies by sharing classified intelligence in a private Signal group, as stated by a person briefed on the findings.
Particulars of the Event
The chat group in question included particulars about a scheduled airstrike in Yemen against Houthi fighters. This discussion was revealed after a journalist for the Atlantic was added as a participant.
Other individuals in the chat allegedly included Senator JD Vance, CIA director John Ratcliffe, and then-national security adviser Mike Waltz. The investigation focused solely on the actions of Hegseth, as the other officials are not employed at the Pentagon.
Signal is a publicly available messaging app that was not authorized for handling sensitive material.
Serious Threat to Forces
The internal investigation found that the information shared by Hegseth was classified and could have endangered the safety of US service members if it had been obtained by a foreign enemy force.
Notably, the document also noted that Hegseth possessed the authority to downgrade the material he shared, though it was not specified whether he actually exercised that authority.
Hegseth's Reaction
The informed individual indicated that Hegseth declined an interview by the inspector general. Instead, he provided a short written response.
In his statement, Hegseth claimed he only shared information that would not have risked lives or compromised the mission. He further stated 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 lawmakers. An unclassified version is expected to be made public in the coming days.
