Pentagon Report Concludes Hegseth Put Military Personnel in Jeopardy with Signal Conversation.
A long-awaited Pentagon report has determined that Pentagon chief Pete Hegseth violated departmental policies by disclosing classified information in a private Signal group, according to a source familiar with the report.
Details of the Event
The chat group in question included particulars about a scheduled air attack in Yemen against Houthi fighters. This chat was revealed after a reporter for the Atlantic was added as a participant.
Other individuals in the group reportedly included JD Vance, CIA director John Ratcliffe, and then-national security adviser Mike Waltz. The report did not examine the conduct of Hegseth, as the other participants are not employed at the Pentagon.
Signal is a commercially offered messaging app that was not authorized for transmitting sensitive material.
Serious Risk to Troops
The internal investigation determined that the intelligence circulated by Hegseth was classified and posed a risk to the safety of US troops if it had been obtained by a hostile nation.
However, the report acknowledged that Hegseth possessed the authority to declassify the information he distributed, though it was not specified whether he formally did so.
Secretary's Reaction
The informed individual said that Hegseth declined an interview by the investigators. Instead, he provided a brief written statement.
In his response, Hegseth asserted he only shared information that would not have endangered personnel or compromised the operation. He further stated that he had the right to declassify material and viewed the inspector general to be politically motivated.
Next Steps
The finalized investigation has been provided to Congress. An publicly releasable copy is expected to be made public in the coming days.
