A confidential discussion among top U.S. national security officials regarding a military attack on Yemen has been leaked. U.S. Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth reportedly added a journalist to a government group chat discussing the attack coordination against the Houthi rebels. This led to the unintentional disclosure of sensitive information.
Additionally, the White House admitted to mistakenly sharing details of the Yemen war plan with a journalist from The Atlantic. Following the publication of the report, the White House acknowledged the error. According to separate reports from Reuters and BBC, the information leak has raised concerns about national security.
The U.S. has been carrying out attacks in Yemen over the past few days. However, a journalist learned about the operation in advance due to a mistake by Trump administration officials. The Atlantic’s Editor-in-Chief Jeffrey Goldberg was mistakenly included in a secret group chat where attack details were discussed. After the publication of his report, the White House confirmed the error.
The White House stated on Monday that senior officials from the Trump administration accidentally shared military plans for an attack on Iran-backed Houthi rebels in Yemen with individuals outside the security circle just moments before the operation. Democratic lawmakers strongly condemned the mistake, calling it a violation of national security and law, urging Congress to investigate the incident.
The leak of such sensitive military plans is highly concerning. If such information reaches enemy forces, it could not only endanger lives but also impact U.S. national security and foreign policy.
The details of the attack were shared in an encrypted chat on the messaging app Signal. Jeffrey Goldberg revealed that National Security Advisor Michael Waltz mistakenly added him to the group chat, where precise details about the attack, including timing, weapons used, and target locations, were shared two hours before the operation began on March 15.
Goldberg also stated that he received prior information about the attack from U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth. Other members of the group chat included U.S. Vice President J.D. Vance, CIA Director John Ratcliffe, and Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard.
In response, U.S. National Security Council spokesperson Brian Hughes acknowledged the mistake and said they are investigating how an unauthorized individual was added to the chat.
A White House official told BBC that “this message thread appears to be authentic.”
Reactions and Political Response
Democratic lawmakers have strongly criticized the Trump administration for this security lapse. Senate Intelligence Committee Democrat Mark Warner said, “This administration’s careless handling of classified information poses a threat to our national security.”
Republican Congressman Don Bacon also expressed concern, stating, “Such information should not be shared on unsecured platforms. Russia and China are certainly monitoring these communications.”
The incident has intensified debates on the handling of national security information within the U.S. government.