Defense Department Investigation Finds Hegseth Placed Military Personnel in Danger with Signal Conversation.
A highly anticipated Department of Defense review has concluded that Pentagon chief Pete Hegseth breached departmental policies by disclosing secret intelligence in a Signal messaging chat, according to a source familiar with the report.
Details of the Incident
The online conversation in dispute contained details about a scheduled airstrike in Yemen targeting Houthi fighters. This discussion came to light after a journalist for the Atlantic was included as a participant.
Other individuals in the group allegedly included Senator JD Vance, CIA director John Ratcliffe, and former security advisor Mike Waltz. The report did not examine the actions of Hegseth, as the other participants do not work at the Pentagon.
Signal is a commercially offered communication application that was not approved for handling classified information.
Serious Threat to Forces
The internal investigation found that the information circulated by Hegseth was classified and could have endangered the lives of US troops if it had been obtained by a hostile nation.
Notably, the report also noted that Hegseth had the ability to declassify the material he distributed, though it was unclear whether he formally did so.
Hegseth's Response
The source indicated that Hegseth declined an interview by the inspector general. Instead, he submitted a brief written statement.
In his response, Hegseth asserted he only shared information that would not have risked lives or jeopardized the mission. He added that he had the right to downgrade information and considered the inspector general to be politically motivated.
Next Steps
The finalized investigation has been provided to Congress. An unclassified version is anticipated to be made public later this week.
