Pentagon Report Concludes Defense Secretary Placed Troops in Jeopardy with Signal Conversation.

A highly anticipated Department of Defense review has concluded that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth breached departmental policies by disclosing classified information in a Signal messaging chat, as stated by a source familiar with the report.

Details of the Incident

The online conversation in question contained details about a planned airstrike in Yemen against Houthi fighters. This discussion came to light after a journalist for the Atlantic was included as a member.

Other officials in the chat allegedly included Senator JD Vance, CIA director John Ratcliffe, and former security advisor Mike Waltz. The investigation did not examine the conduct of Hegseth, as the other officials do not work at the Pentagon.

Signal is a publicly available messaging app that was not authorized for transmitting sensitive material.

Serious Threat to Forces

The inspector general's report found that the information circulated by Hegseth was classified and could have endangered the lives of US troops if it had been intercepted by a hostile nation.

However, the document also noted that Hegseth possessed the authority to downgrade the information he distributed, though it was unclear whether he actually did so.

Hegseth's Response

The informed individual said that Hegseth refused to be interviewed by the inspector general. Instead, he submitted a brief written statement.

In his statement, Hegseth asserted he only shared information that would not have risked lives or compromised the mission. He further stated that he had the right to downgrade information and considered the investigation to be politically motivated.

Next Steps

The completed report has been shared with lawmakers. An publicly releasable copy is expected to be released later this week.