A long-awaited Department of Defense report has determined that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth breached departmental policies by disclosing classified information in a Signal messaging chat, according to a person briefed on the findings.
Details of the Incident
The online conversation in question included details about a scheduled airstrike in Yemen targeting Houthi fighters. This chat was revealed 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 conduct of Hegseth, as the other participants are not employed at the Department of Defense.
Signal is a publicly available communication application that was not approved for handling classified information.
Serious Risk to Troops
The internal investigation found that the information circulated by Hegseth was classified and posed a risk to the lives of US troops if it had been intercepted by a hostile nation.
However, the document acknowledged that Hegseth possessed the authority to downgrade the information he distributed, though it was unclear whether he formally did so.
Hegseth's Reaction
The source said that Hegseth declined an interview by the investigators. Instead, he submitted a short written response.
In his statement, Hegseth claimed he only disclosed details that would not have endangered personnel or jeopardized the mission. He further stated that he possessed the authority to downgrade information and considered the investigation to be politically motivated.
Future Actions
The finalized investigation has been shared with Congress. An unclassified version is expected to be released in the coming days.
