A long-awaited Department of Defense review has concluded that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth violated official protocols by sharing secret intelligence in a private Signal group, according to a source familiar with the report.
Particulars of the Event
The online conversation in dispute included details about a scheduled air attack in Yemen targeting Houthi fighters. This chat was revealed after a reporter for the Atlantic was added as a member.
Other individuals in the group reportedly 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 Department of Defense.
Signal is a publicly available communication application that was not authorized for handling classified information.
Potential Threat to Troops
The inspector general's report found that the intelligence circulated by Hegseth was secret and posed a risk to the lives of US service members if it had been intercepted by a foreign enemy force.
However, the document acknowledged that Hegseth had the ability to declassify the information he distributed, though it was not specified whether he formally exercised that authority.
Hegseth's Reaction
The informed individual indicated that Hegseth refused to be interviewed by the investigators. Instead, he submitted a brief written statement.
In his statement, Hegseth claimed he only disclosed information that would not have risked lives or compromised the mission. He further stated that he had the right to declassify material and viewed the inspector general to be politically motivated.
Future Actions
The completed report has been shared with Congress. An unclassified version is expected to be made public later this week.
