Pentagon's Acting Inspector General to Review Defense Secretary's Use of Signal App for Military Strike Plans in Yemen

The Pentagon's acting inspector general has initiated a review of Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth's utilization of the Signal messaging app to transmit military strike plans targeting Houthi militants in Yemen. The inspection also encompasses other defense officials' use of the publicly available encrypted app, which lacks the capacity to handle classified information and is distinct from the Defense Department's secure communication network. Hegseth's involvement with the app was uncovered when journalist Jeffrey Goldberg of The Atlantic was inadvertently added to a Signal text chain by National Security Adviser Mike Waltz. The chain included Hegseth, Vice President JD Vance, Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard, and others, convening to discuss March 15 military operations against the Iran-backed Houthis. The review, prompted by Michigan's Republican Senator Roger Wicker and Rhode Island Senator Jack Reed, seeks to ascertain adherence to Department of Defense policies and procedures regarding the use of a commercial messaging application for official purposes.