Leaked US Military Plans Contained No Classified Information, CIA Director Says

CIA Director John Ratcliffe on Tuesday stressed that his communications within a Signal messaging group were entirely lawful and did not contain classified information, the Associated Press reported. Testifying before the Senate Intelligence Committee on global security threats in the wake of a security breach involving leaked US military plans, Ratcliffe told lawmakers, “​My communications to be clear in the Signal message group were entirely permissible and lawful and did not include classified information.” ​

The controversy erupted when a Signal group chat, intended for high-level government officials, was inadvertently shared with a journalist at The Atlantic. The chat reportedly included discussions about sensitive military operations against Houthi militants in Yemen, raising concerns about the administration’s handling of classified information.

The discussion within the chat revealed operational details about forthcoming strikes, including target information, weaponry to be used, and attack sequencing.

Democratic Senator Mark Warner criticised the incident as “sloppy, careless, incompetent behaviour”, even as Ratcliffe insisted that “no rules were violated”.

Stressing that such a lapse would likely result in severe repercussions for lower-ranking personnel, Senator Warner reportedly said, “If a lower-ranking officer had texted similar secret plans, they would be fired.” 

During heated questions from Senator Warner, Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard stressed that there’s a difference between “inadvertent” releases of information and intentional leaks.

“There was no classified material that was shared,” Gabbard stressed, according to AP.

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