Trump officials texted secret Yemen war plans to journalist
Editor-in-chief of The Atlantic received US plan for Yemen strikes after being added to a group chat on Signal app
02:19
US officials accidentally share Yemen war plans with journalist in apparent security breach
Top national security officials for US President Donald Trump, including his defence secretary, texted war plans for upcoming military strikes in Yemen to a group chat in a secure messaging app that included the editor-in-chief for The Atlantic, the magazine reported in a story posted online Monday.
The National Security Council said the text chain “appears to be authentic”.
Trump initially told reporters he was not aware that the highly sensitive information had been shared, 2½ hours after it was reported. He later appeared to joke about the breach.
Trump told NBC News that it was “the only glitch in two months, and it turned out not to be a serious one,” adding his national security adviser Michael Waltz had “learned a lesson”.
The material in the text chain “contained operational details of forthcoming strikes on Iran-backed Houthi-rebels in Yemen, including information about targets, weapons the US would be deploying, and attack sequencing,” editor-in-chief Jeffrey Goldberg reported.
It was not immediately clear if the specifics of the military operation were classified, but they often are and at the least are kept secure to protect service members and operational security. The US has conducted air strikes against the Houthis since the militant group began targeting commercial and military vessels in the Red Sea in November 2023.