US Security Officials Accidentally Leak 'Houthi Airstrike Intelligence' to Media

White House Also Acknowledges the Incident
Sensitive Military Secrets Discussed on Civilian Messaging App
Cited as One of the Worst Security Failures

Before the U.S. military conducted airstrikes against Yemen's Iran-aligned Houthi rebels, a leak of classified information occurred during discussions of the war plan via a messenger app by the U.S. diplomatic and security team. Foreign media viewed the incident as problematic not only because the war plan was accidentally exposed to the press but also because sensitive military secrets were discussed on a civilian messaging platform. When asked about the matter, President Donald Trump responded, "I don't know," and criticized the magazine that raised the issue as a "magazine that will soon fail."

Jeffrey Goldberg, editor of the American media outlet The Atlantic, revealed on the 24th (local time) that he had been added to a group chat of national security leaders discussing the airstrikes in Yemen, and the White House confirmed this fact on the same day.

In his report, Goldberg said that while the world learned at 2 p.m. Eastern Time on March 15 that the U.S. military had attacked Houthi targets across Yemen, he was informed of this two hours before the first bomb exploded.

He explained that National Security Advisor Mike Waltz accidentally added him to the commercial messenger app "Signal," and as a result, at 11:44 a.m. on the 15th, he received the war plan shared by Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth. The plan included information on weapon packages, targets, timing, and more.

The Wall Street Journal (WSJ) reported that the group chat included 18 users in total, such as Vice President J.D. Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio.

Foreign media outlets including The New York Times (NYT) pointed out that the leak was problematic not only because the information was accidentally shared with the press but also because highly sensitive information was discussed via a civilian messenger. Such classified information should be handled within the White House or shared through secure government networks when dealing with top-secret data.

Senator Jack Reed (D-Rhode Island), the ranking member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, called it "one of the worst examples of operational security and common sense failures I have ever seen."

President Donald Trump, when asked about the issue at an event announcing Hyundai Motor Group's investment in the U.S., replied, "I know nothing about that." He also criticized The Atlantic, saying it was a "magazine that will soon fail" and that he did not consider it a real magazine.

The White House later issued a statement from a spokesperson saying, "The attack on the Houthis was very successful, and President Trump has the utmost trust in National Security Advisor Waltz and the national security team."