The Pentagon’s inspector general has evidence that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth pulled information on a plan to bomb Yemen from a document that was classified at the time, CNN and The Washington Post reported Wednesday, directly contradicting claims from the Trump administration.
President Donald Trump has defended Hegseth, accepting his claim that the precise details of the military mission shared in the chat were not actually classified.
However, the details reportedly came from a secure email marked “SECRET/NOFORN,” meaning that foreign nationals should not see its contents. It had been sent by Gen. Michael “Erik” Kurilla, who oversees U.S. military operations in the Middle East, the Post reported.
The Signal group chat that Goldberg was part of included Vice President JD Vance, Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard and Secretary of State Marco Rubio.
Hegseth also reportedly shared similar details about the Yemen campaign in a second group chat that included his wife.
The Pentagon announced in April that it was opening an investigation into Hegseth’s use of Signal.
Asked for comment, chief Pentagon spokesperson Sean Parnell responded with snark.
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“This Signal narrative is so old and worn out, it’s starting to resemble Joe Biden’s mental state,” Parnell said in an emailed statement to HuffPost.
He said the Department of Defense stands behind what it has said — “no classified information was shared via Signal.”
“As we’ve said repeatedly, nobody was texting war plans and the success of the Department’s recent operations — from Operation Rough Rider to Operation Midnight Hammer — are proof that our operational security and discipline are top notch,” Parnell concluded, naming the Yemen operation and a separate attack on Iran.
