A Pentagon investigation has faulted U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth for using Signal on his personal device to transmit sensitive information about planned strikes in Yemen, saying the messages could have endangered U.S. forces if intercepted, two people familiar with the document said on Wednesday.

The report by the Pentagon’s independent Inspector General did not assess whether the information Hegseth shared was classified at the time, the sources said.

The review acknowledged that the defense secretary has the authority to decide what information is classified.

The findings have not yet been made public, with officials expecting the report’s release later this week. In a statement, the Pentagon said the review cleared Hegseth. He echoed that position on social media.

“No classified information. Total exoneration. Case closed,” Hegseth wrote on X.

Legal concerns intensified

Scrutiny of Hegseth is rising as he oversees deadly U.S. strikes on suspected drug vessels in the Caribbean, operations that critics say raise serious legal questions.

Prominent Democrats, including the top Democrat on the House Armed Services Committee, said the investigation shows Hegseth lacks the judgment required of the nation’s senior defense official.

“This report is a damning review of an incompetent secretary of defense who is profoundly incapable of the job,” said Rep. Adam Smith of Washington. “He clearly has no respect for or comprehension of what is required to safeguard our service members.”

Hegseth shared details of the planned March 15 attacks on Yemen’s Iran-aligned Houthi fighters in a Signal chat that included top national security officials in President Donald Trump’s administration — and, inadvertently, Jeffrey Goldberg, editor-in-chief of The Atlantic.

Goldberg later wrote about the exchange and, after officials accused him of inflating its significance, published screenshots of the group chat.

One screenshot showed Hegseth discussing plans to kill a Houthi militant leader roughly two hours before the covert operation.

IG cites risk to mission

According to the sources, the Inspector General concluded the information sent to Hegseth by the U.S. military was classified at the time, and that sharing it over Signal could have jeopardized the mission or endangered U.S. personnel.

Hegseth has repeatedly denied texting war plans or sharing classified information. He declined to be interviewed by investigators, the sources said.

In a written statement to the IG, Hegseth argued he was permitted to declassify information as he saw fit and had only sent details he believed posed no operational risk. He also accused political opponents of driving the probe, even though lawmakers from both parties requested it, the source said.

Former officials said Hegseth’s explanations bewildered them. Timing and targeting details are typically among the most sensitive pieces of information ahead of U.S. military action.

If Houthi leaders had known a strike was imminent, they could have fled to more crowded areas where targeting would be harder and civilian casualties more likely.

Still, the chat did not appear to include names or precise locations of intended targets, nor did it appear to disclose information that could have been used to track U.S. troops deploying for the mission.

Pattern of behavior flagged

Sen. Mark Warner, the top Democrat on the Senate Intelligence Committee, said the report noted several other Signal chats used for official business, “underscoring that this was not an isolated lapse.”

“It reflects a broader pattern of recklessness and poor judgment from a secretary who has repeatedly shown he is in over his head,” Warner said.

Investigators also found that Hegseth provided only a small number of Signal messages for review, leaving the IG to rely partly on screenshots published by The Atlantic, the source said.