The editor of the Atlantic magazine was inadvertently added to a Signal chat in which senior security officials in the Trump administration, including Pentagon chief Pete Hegseth, discussed details of air strikes on Yemen
Pete Hegseth is once again in the spotlight, but this time, the scrutiny has only intensified. AFP

KEY POINTS

  • NYT reported that Hegseth had been warned beforehand not to use Signal chats to discuss such sensitive details
  • Hegseth allegedly shared Yemen Houthi airstrikes information in a group of 13 people that included his wife
  • Democrats and political observers want Hegseth to be fired over the alleged national security threat through his actions
  • The White House blasted the reports as a 'non-story,' insisting no sensitive info had been shared through the app

Calls for U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth's removal from office are mounting following new reports that he shared Yemen attack details in a second Signal messaging group that included his family members.

In a Sunday bombshell, The New York Times and other U.S. media reported that Hegseth created another Signal messaging group chat where he shared similar details of a military airstrike targeting Yemeni Houthi militants, but this time, the people he shared the details with were reportedly not cabinet members.

Hegseth Shared Yemen Plans With His Wife: Media

As per the NYT report, which cited a person with knowledge of the group chat's contents and the people who received Hegseth's messages, the details shared about the attack on Yemeni Houthis were similar to the information discussed on the first group chat, whose details earned sharp criticism from Democrats and social media users.

The report revealed that the defense chief had been warned a day or two before the airstrikes by an aide not to discuss sensitive operational details within the app, which doesn't have the same security that government channels employ.

Reuters later reported on the same second Signal group chat, citing a source familiar with the matter who said the chat included Hegseth's wife, brother, and personal lawyer.

A person familiar with the group chat confirmed the information to The Associated Press. The person revealed that there were 13 people within the chat that was dubbed "Defense Team Huddle."

Before Sunday's news, Hegseth was already under scrutiny following the revelation of details from a first Signal group chat wherein top Trump cabinet officials discussed the Yemen airstrikes.

Democrats, X Users Demand Accountability

Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer called for Hegseth's removal from his position. "The details keep coming out. We keep learning how Pete Hegseth put lives at risk. But Trump is still too weak to fire him," he wrote Sunday.

Sen. Tammy Duckworth, a combat veteran of the Iraq War, said Hegseth "must resign in disgrace" for once again leaking "classified intelligence." Duckworth accused Hegseth of being "a threat to our national security."

Rep. Jerry Nadler pointed out how Hegseth "used an unsecured app" to discuss military matters with officials and now, he shared "those sensitive details with his family over Signal."

Political strategist Chris D. Jackson called the alleged leak of classified information by the defense chief "a stunning national security breach." He argued that Hegseth's "reckless" and "criminal" actions must be accounted for. "He should be fired and indicted immediately," Jackson said.

Political commentator Fred Wellman said the second Signal chat is "a thousand times worse than the other group," given the severity of the situation. "He should go," Wellman said.

White House Deputy Press Secretary Anna Kelly has called the reports a "non-story," saying it won't change "the fact that no classified information was shared" in the chats.

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