Trump denies Hegseth's involvement in Signal leak
Donald Trump (photo: Getty Images)
On Wednesday, The Atlantic published more messages from a controversial chat involving senior US officials on the Signal messaging app. Pentagon Chief Pete Hegset is directly mentioned in the messages, but US President Donald Trump denies his involvement, according to Fox News broadcast.
"Hegset is doing a great job. He had nothing to do with this. Hegseth, how do you bring Hegseth into it? He had nothing to do. Look, look, it's all a witch hunt... I don't know that signal works I think could be defective to be honest with you," Trump said during a conversation with reporters.
What preceded this
Pentagon Chief Pete Hegset and National Security Advisor Mike Waltz came under pressure with calls for their resignation after it was revealed that The Atlantic’s editor-in-chief, Jeffrey Goldberg, was accidentally added to a group chat on Signal.
This chat, which involved Hegset, Waltz, US Vice President JD Vance, and other senior administration officials, contained discussions on upcoming airstrikes against the Houthi rebels in Yemen.
Following The Atlantic's initial publication, Hegset issued a statement denying that any military plans had been shared. National Intelligence Director Tulsi Gabbard, speaking before the Senate Intelligence Committee on Tuesday, also emphasized that there were "no classified details" in the messages.
However, the new publication from The Atlantic showed screenshots of the conversation where Hegset shared specific details—timing and sequence—of the planned US strikes on the Houthis.
In the initial article, Goldberg avoided specifics, limiting himself to generalizations, as he feared that revealing the details could jeopardize the lives of American servicemen.
For more details on what was known about the leak from the secret Signal chat at the very beginning, read the full article on RBK-Ukraine.
