A long-awaited Department of Defense report has concluded that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth violated official protocols by sharing classified intelligence in a private Signal group, according to a person briefed on the findings.
Details of the Event
The online conversation in question contained particulars about a scheduled airstrike in Yemen targeting Houthi fighters. This chat was revealed after a journalist for the Atlantic was added as a member.
Other individuals in the group allegedly included Senator JD Vance, CIA director John Ratcliffe, and then-national security adviser Mike Waltz. The investigation did not examine the actions of Hegseth, as the other officials are not employed at the Department of Defense.
Signal is a publicly available messaging app that was not approved for handling sensitive material.
Potential Threat to Troops
The internal investigation found that the intelligence circulated by Hegseth was classified and posed a risk to the lives of US service members if it had been intercepted by a foreign enemy force.
Notably, the report acknowledged that Hegseth possessed the authority to downgrade the information he distributed, though it was unclear whether he actually did so.
Hegseth's Reaction
The informed individual said that Hegseth refused to be interviewed by the investigators. Instead, he provided a short written response.
In his response, Hegseth asserted he only disclosed information that would not have endangered personnel or jeopardized the operation. He added that he possessed the authority to declassify material and considered the investigation to be politically motivated.
Next Steps
The completed report has been provided to Congress. An unclassified version is expected to be released later this week.
