US defence secretary Pete Hegseth risked imperilling American troops by sharing information that could have been intercepted by a foreign adversary, according to a Pentagon watchdog.
Sky’s US partner NBC News is reporting that the Inspector General also found that Mr Hegseth violated military regulations by using his personal phone for official business.
The detail circulated in a group chat on the Signal app in March this year related to an imminent strike on Houthi rebels in Yemen.
Messages reportedly posted by Mr Hegseth included: “1415: Strike drones on target (THIS IS WHEN THE FIRST BOMBS WILL DEFINITELY DROP).”
U.S. Secretary of Defence Pete Hegseth speaks during a meeting with Dominican Republic president. Pic: Reuters
Another read: “We are currently clean on OPSEC” – that’s operational security, suggesting the sender recognised the sensitivity of the information.
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A journalist from The Atlantic had been inadvertently added to the group chat and reported how the top-secret military operation had been shared both in advance and in real time.
The ‘Signal-gate’ scandal led to bipartisan calls for Mr Hegseth’s resignation, but it was Donald Trump’s national security advisor Mike Waltz, who was also in the group, who lost his job.
It later emerged that Mr Hegseth had created a second Signal group, including his wife, brother and personal lawyer, and shared much of the same detail there.
The information came from an email labelled ‘SECRET/NOFORN”, meaning it was classified and not to be shared with foreign nationals.
Mr Hegseth, who has renamed his office The Department of War, declined to be interviewed by those investigating what became known as ‘Signal-gate’.
In a written submission, he said he only shared information that he thought would not risk the mission or troops carrying it out.
