 "U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth. AP")
The Pentagon’s watchdog will investigate Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth for using the Signal messaging app to share details of airstrikes on Yemen, news agency AFP reported, citing officials.
The move follows a leaked group chat involving senior Trump administration officials, including Hegseth and National Security Adviser Mike Waltz, which discussed military action against Yemen’s Huthi rebels. Accidentally, the editor-in-chief of The Atlantic was added to the chat group.
The Pentagon Inspector General’s office will examine whether Hegseth and others followed rules for using commercial apps for official communication, as well as whether they complied with security and record-keeping laws, according to a memo from Acting IG Steven Stebbins.
The probe was launched after a request by the top Republican and Democrat on the Senate Armed Services Committee.
The Atlantic magazine first reported the incident after its editor-in-chief, Jeffrey Goldberg, was accidentally added to the Signal group. Messages included details such as the timing of the airstrikes, aircraft and missile types, and real-time intelligence on the strike’s aftermath.
Though the White House said no classified information was shared, the magazine later published the messages, prompting further controversy.
A judge has now ordered the Trump administration to preserve all Signal messages exchanged from 11 March to 15 March — the period during which the chat was active and the strikes occurred.
Some messages had been set to auto-delete after one to four weeks, raising questions about possible violations of federal records laws.
Former President Trump blamed Waltz for the leak but rejected calls for any resignations, defending the strikes as a success.
Impact Shorts
More ShortsThe Huthis have targeted shipping routes in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden since the 2023 Gaza conflict, causing major disruptions. In response, the US has carried out near-daily airstrikes on Huthi targets since 15 March.