A long-awaited Department of Defense review has concluded that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth violated departmental policies by sharing classified information in a private Signal group, as stated by 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 militants. This discussion was revealed after a journalist for the Atlantic was added as a participant.
Other individuals in the chat allegedly included JD Vance, CIA director John Ratcliffe, and former security advisor Mike Waltz. The report did not examine the actions of Hegseth, as the other officials do not work at the Department of Defense.
Signal is a publicly available communication application that was not approved for handling classified information.
Potential Risk to Troops
The internal investigation determined that the information circulated by Hegseth was classified and could have endangered the safety of US troops if it had been intercepted by a hostile nation.
Notably, the document acknowledged that Hegseth possessed the authority to declassify the information he distributed, though it was not specified whether he formally exercised that authority.
Secretary's Reaction
The informed individual indicated that Hegseth refused to be interviewed by the investigators. Instead, he provided a short written response.
In his statement, Hegseth claimed he only shared details that would not have endangered personnel or jeopardized the mission. He added that he possessed the authority to downgrade information and considered the inspector general to be partisan.
Future Actions
The finalized investigation has been provided to lawmakers. An publicly releasable copy is expected to be made public in the coming days.
