In a shocking security breach, senior Trump administration officials, including Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth and National Security Advisor Mike Waltz, reportedly shared classified war plans for strikes on Yemen’s Houthi targets in a Signal group chat—one that inadvertently included The Atlantic’s editor-in-chief, Jeffrey Goldberg.
The revelation, first published by Goldberg on Monday, has sparked outrage in Washington, with Democrats criticising the administration for jeopardising national security. “This recklessness makes all Americans less safe,” a Democratic lawmaker said.
Goldberg, in his report titled “The Trump administration accidentally texted me its war plans”, detailed how he was added to the group chat and received sensitive information, including specific targets, weapons packages, and attack timing.
“I knew two hours before the first bombs exploded that the attack might be coming,” Goldberg wrote. “The reason I knew this is that Pete Hegseth, the secretary of defence, had texted me the war plan at 11:44 am.”
The US carried out airstrikes on Houthi positions across Yemen later that day, at approximately 1:45pm Eastern Time.
Following the leak, National Security Council spokesman Brian Hughes confirmed the authenticity of the messages, stating that officials were “reviewing how an inadvertent number was added to the chain.” The White House, meanwhile, sought to downplay the controversy.
“President Trump continues to have the utmost confidence in his national security team,” a White House statement read. Trump himself distanced from the situation, saying he did not “know anything about” the issue when asked by reporters.
The leak has raised serious concerns about the handling of classified military discussions. Security experts have pointed to the potential risks posed by such lapses, warning that foreign adversaries could exploit similar vulnerabilities.
