Pentagon Investigation Finds Defense Secretary Placed Troops in Jeopardy with Messaging App Chat.

A highly anticipated Pentagon review has concluded that Pentagon chief Pete Hegseth violated official protocols by sharing classified intelligence in a Signal messaging chat, as stated by a person briefed on the findings.

Details of the Event

The chat group in question contained details about a scheduled airstrike in Yemen against Houthi fighters. This chat came to light after a reporter for the Atlantic was included as a member.

Other individuals in the chat reportedly included Senator 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 do not work at the Department of Defense.

Signal is a publicly available messaging app that was not authorized for handling classified information.

Potential Risk to Troops

The inspector general's report determined that the information circulated by Hegseth was secret and could have endangered the safety of US troops if it had been obtained by a hostile nation.

Notably, the document acknowledged that Hegseth possessed the authority to downgrade the information he distributed, though it was unclear whether he actually exercised that authority.

Hegseth's Response

The source said that Hegseth refused to be interviewed by the investigators. Instead, he provided a brief written statement.

In his statement, Hegseth asserted he only disclosed details that would not have risked lives or compromised the operation. He further stated that he had the right to declassify material and viewed the investigation to be politically motivated.

Next Steps

The finalized investigation has been provided to lawmakers. An unclassified version is anticipated to be made public later this week.