Hegseth broke the rules by sharing news of the attack in Yemen

An internal Pentagon investigation accuses U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth of using the Signal app on a personal device while handling sensitive information about a planned attack in Yemen.

According to sources familiar with the results of the investigation, this action could have put US troops at risk. However, the report by the Pentagon's independent inspector general does not comment on whether the information Hegseth was sending was classified at the time. In fact, it states that as head of the Defense Department, he can decide what is classified and what is not, the sources said.

Hegseth shared details of the March 15, 2025, attack on Iran-linked Houthi fighters with top officials in President Donald Trump's administration.

But the Signal Group also coincidentally included Jeffrey Goldberg, editor-in-chief of The Atlantic magazine, who posted screenshots of the conversation.

The Pentagon said in a statement that the vetting cleared the defense secretary, a claim Hegseth later reiterated on social media. "No classified information. Full exoneration. Case closed," Hegseth wrote on the X platform.

(reuters, sie)