US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth risked endangering troops by using the Signal messaging app to discuss a strike on Houthis in Yemen, sources say a Pentagon watchdog report finds.
US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth put American troops and mission at risk when he used the Signal mesaging app on his personal device to discuss planned strikes against Houthi militants in Yemen, a report by the Pentagon’s watchdog has found.
That’s according to US media, including CNN and ABC, and news agencies. They cite sources familiar with the results of the investigation by the Pentagon’s inspector general, which hasn’t yet been publicly released.
Hegseth didn’t violate rules on classification, the report found according to the sources, because as the head of the Pentagon, he has the authority to declassify information.
But the information shouldn’t have been discussed on the commercial app, the report said. That’s because the information was so sensitive that it could have endangered the lives of American troops and the mission itself if it was intercepted.
Hegseth declined to sit for an interview with the inspector general, sources said, citing the report. Instead, he provided written answers. He also only provided a small number of his Signal messages for review.
The meant the investigation had to rely on screenshots published by The Atlantic magazine, whose editor-in-chief was accidentally added to the Signal chat, according to sources.
The classified review was delivered on Tuesday evening to Congress.
A partially redacted version of the report is expected to be released publicly later this week, possibly on Thursday.
Trump stands by Hegseth
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said that the review affirms the Trump administration’s statements that “no classified information was leaked, and operational security was not compromised.”
“President Trump stands by Secretary Hegseth,” Leavitt said in a statement on Wednesday.
The Pentagon said the review exonerated Hegseth.
“This matter is resolved, and the case is closed,” Pentagon spokesperson Sean Parnell said in a statement to CNN.
Hegseth used Signal to discuss Yemen strikes
Hegseth’s use of the commercial messaging app came to light when the editor-in-chief of The Atlantic magazine, Jeffrey Goldberg, was mistakenly added to a Signal chat by then-national security adviser Mike Waltz.
Signal is encrypted, but it isn’t authorized for carrying classified information and isn’t part of the Defense Department’s secure communications network.
The group chat included Vice President JD Vance, Secretary of State Marco Rubioand the Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard as well as others.
The officials discussed March 15 military operations against the Iran- backed Houthis in Yemen.