US President Donald Trump. In a joint session of Congress in Washington, March 4, 2025 Photo: Reuters The US media outlet The Atlantic published details of a conversation on the messaging app 'Signal' about a plan to attack the Houthis in Yemen on Wednesday. The leak of group chat information has put President Donald Trump's administration under pressure. Opposition Democratic Party lawmakers have demanded the resignation of Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and National Security Advisor Mike Waltz. Before these details were released, a hearing on the issue has been underway in the Senate Intelligence Committee of the upper house of Congress since Tuesday. Democrats claim that the release of the plan to attack the Houthis has leaked state secrets. This has threatened national security. However, President Donald Trump is not giving much importance to the issue. On Tuesday, he said that there was nothing secret in the group chat. Defense Secretary Hegseth also said the same thing on Wednesday. On the other hand, Trump spokeswoman Caroline Levitt described the Atlantic report as a “hoax.” The United States has been conducting drone and air strikes on various facilities in Houthi-controlled areas in Yemen for several days. Vice President JD Vance, Defense Secretary Hegseth and National Security Advisor Mike Waltz, along with other top Trump administration officials, were chatting on the Signal app about the plan for the attack. The Atlantic editor-in-chief Jeffrey Goldberg was also accidentally added to the chat group. It is believed that Mike Waltz accidentally added Goldberg to the chat group. The Atlantic reported on Wednesday the details of the chat. The March 15 discussion by Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth about the attack on the Houthis is considered to be the most important and sensitive. The Atlantic claims that the Defense Secretary mentioned the time of the attack and what type of aircraft would be used in the chat. The effectiveness of previous attacks on the Houthis was also discussed. Houthi officials claim that 53 people, including women and five children, were killed in the US attack.In a message on the chat, Hegseth wrote, ‘Weather favorable. Just confirmed to CENTCOM that we are going to start the operation. 14:15: Drone hit the target (first bomb will be dropped at this time).’Later, Mike Waltz wrote in a message about the situation of a hit facility, citing intelligence information at the time of the attack. According to the Atlantic report, the facility appears to be located in the Yemeni capital, Sanaa.According to the BBC report, Defense Minister Hegseth responded after the publication of the Atlantic report. He again strongly claimed that there was nothing secret in the chat. Hegseth wrote on social media X, ‘The Atlantic has published the so-called “war plans”. There were no names mentioned in these “plans”. There was no mention of a target. There was no mention of a location. There was no mention of a unit. There was no name of an attack route. There was no mention of a source. There was no mention of a method of attack.’Defense Secretary Hegseth said, ‘This proves that Jeffrey Goldberg never saw a war plan or an “attack plan” (as he now claims). He was nowhere near one.’ Hegseth also wrote, ‘We will continue our work. At the same time, the media will do what it does best—(and that is) spread lies.’ On Wednesday local time, Trump spokeswoman Carolyn Levitt told reporters that National Security Adviser Mike Waltz had taken responsibility for the “mistake.” But she added that the president had “confidence in the national security team.”
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