Pentagon Investigation Finds Defense Secretary Put Military Personnel in Jeopardy with Signal Conversation.
A long-awaited Department of Defense review has determined that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth violated departmental policies by sharing secret intelligence in a private Signal group, according to a person briefed on the findings.
Details of the Incident
The online conversation in question included details about a planned airstrike in Yemen against Houthi militants. This discussion came to light after a reporter for the Atlantic was added as a member.
Other officials in the group reportedly included JD Vance, CIA director John Ratcliffe, and then-national security adviser Mike Waltz. The investigation focused solely on the conduct of Hegseth, as the other officials are not employed at the Pentagon.
Signal is a commercially offered messaging app that was not approved for handling classified information.
Potential Risk to Forces
The internal investigation found that the information circulated by Hegseth was secret and could have endangered the lives of US troops if it had been obtained by a foreign enemy force.
However, the document acknowledged that Hegseth possessed the authority to declassify the material he shared, though it was not specified whether he actually exercised that authority.
Hegseth's Response
The source indicated that Hegseth declined an interview by the investigators. Instead, he provided a short written response.
In his response, Hegseth claimed he only disclosed details that would not have endangered personnel or compromised the operation. He further stated that he possessed the authority to downgrade information and viewed the inspector general to be politically motivated.
Future Actions
The finalized investigation has been provided to Congress. An unclassified version is expected to be released later this week.
