The details of upcoming military attacks against Iran-backed Houthis in Yemen were inadvertently leaked to a journalist by high-ranking US national security officials.

According to a report published by The Atlantic on Monday, it was revealed that a Signal group discussing the attack plans in Yemen included “by mistake” The Atlantic’s editor-in-chief Jeffrey Goldberg, as well as top US officials including Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth. The messages shared in the group were said to contain “operational details of the imminent attacks, targets, weapons the US would use, and the sequence of attacks.” Just two hours after Goldberg received information about the attack, the US initiated a series of airstrikes against Houthi targets in Yemen. Goldberg announced the news under the title ‘Trump administration accidentally messaged me war plans’.

In the Signal group, which included Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) Director John Ratcliffe, Vice President J.D. Vance, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, and National Security Adviser Mike Waltz, discussions were held on the reasons for the Yemen attack, its political ramifications, and how to communicate it to the public. Vice President J.D. Vance emphasized that the primary purpose of the military operation against the Houthis was to send a strong message, saying “3% of US trade and 40% of European trade pass through the Suez Canal. There is a danger that the public might not understand the Houthi issue. Our real reason is to send a strong message.”

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth expressed the difficulty of explaining the operation to the public, stating: “I think it will be difficult to explain the issue to the public in any case. We must move on from this rhetoric: Biden failed, Iran funded. There are other dangers right now. First, the operation might be leaked, and we could appear indecisive. Second, Israel may act before us or the Gaza ceasefire may end.”

Supporting the operation, Vance said, “If you say let’s do it, then let’s do it. I’m tired of just saving these Europeans.” Hegseth also expressed similar criticisms towards Europe, stating, “I am also tired, Europe’s situation is embarrassing. But there is no one else in the world who can do this other than us. They are not even close.”

White House Deputy Chief of Staff Stephen Miller drew attention to the economic dimension of the operation, stating: “The President is clear about this. He gave the green light. But we need to determine what we want in return from Egypt and Europe. Of course, how we will enforce this is important. What will happen if Europe does not comply? If the US is paying a high price to ensure freedom of navigation at sea, there should be an economic return.” Hegseth agreed with this comment.

Following the airstrikes against Houthi targets in Yemen, messages among officials in the Trump administration celebrating the successful start of the operation stood out. CIA Director John Ratcliffe expressed his satisfaction with the initial stages of the operation by saying, “We’re off to a good start.” The accidental sharing of attack plans with a journalist occurred during a time when the Pentagon had introduced strict measures to prevent leaks of classified information. Defense Secretary Hegseth’s office recently announced a new security package aimed at preventing the leakage of sensitive information. Among these measures is the possibility of conducting lie detector tests on defense personnel to identify officials leaking information to journalists.

The National Security Council stated that they are investigating how a journalist’s phone number was added to the group chat on the Signal application. While state officials use the Signal app for organizational communication, this platform can be vulnerable because it is unclassified. The White House did not disclose whether the content of the leaked messages was classified, but emphasized the need to protect information related to military operations for security reasons.

President Donald Trump, on the other hand, stated that he “knew nothing” about high-ranking officials accidentally sending war plans to a journalist.