Monday Jeffrey Goldberg, editor-in-chief of the magazine The Atlantic, described how he reached the group in the Signal communicator of Donald Trump's administration, which discussed details of the attack on the Yemeni panic group Huti. At first, the writer thought it was a trick.
Editor in chief The Atlantic Michael Waltz, Trump's national safety advisor, invited to join the group in the Signal app. A spokesperson for the National safety Council, Brian Hughes, confirmed the authenticity of the news, adding that there is an analysis of how the incorrect number went to chat. Signal, a high-level safety app, offers end-to-end encryption, which means that even the app itself does not have access to conversation content. However, in this case, a human mistake has led to the disclosure of possibly confidential information.
Double Danger
The Trump administration's compromise caused a large stir in the US. U.S. President, in an interview with NBC News, only stated that That was a ridiculous mistake..
In any case, an analysis of publically available data shows that Steve Witkoff, an American emissary for mediate East Affairs, was added to the discussion at the Signal 12 hours after arriving at Moscow airport. As CBS notes, it is unclear whether Witkoff utilized the application on a business or private telephone and whether he had it with him in Russia. However, tv claims that American officials were advised not to usage this communicator on business phones.
Democrats want officials to step down
On Tuesday, during their speech to the legislature Intelligence Commission, the heads of intelligence services defended their participation in the discussion, claiming that discussing the plan to attack Huti rebels in Yemen did not constitute an exchange of classified information. According to Goldberg, 2 hours before the first attack on Yemen, the Pentagon chief sent the group detailed information on the operation plan, including targets, individuals, weapons types and sequences of events.
CIA manager John Ratcliffe claimed during the proceeding that his participation in the Signal discussion was legitimate, and the application was installed on his service computer. Tulsi Gabbard admitted that, like Witkoff, she participated in the chat while abroad, on a business journey to the Indo-Pacific countries. However, she refused to answer the question whether she was utilizing a business telephone or a private phone.
During the Tuesday hearing, Gabbard and Ratcliffe faced fierce criticism from Democratic Senators. The vice chief of the commission, Senator Mark Warner, called for the resignation of both Pentagon chief Pete Hegseth and national safety advisor Mike Waltz, who mistakenly invited the writer to discuss.
