02:34 / 27.03.2025

New screenshots of Trump team chat discussing Yemen attack

New screenshots have been released showing senior US government officials discussing the attack on the Houthi rebels in Yemen on the Signal messenger before the strikes. The Atlantic editor-in-chief Jeffrey Goldberg accidentally joined the chat.

According to the new screenshots, Pentagon chief Pete Hegseth sent a message that American F-18 fighter jets had taken off 31 minutes before the mission began and two hours before the planned target was destroyed.

National Security Advisor Mike Walz later provided detailed information about the results of the attack in the chat. "We found that the first target - their chief missile expert - entered the building where his girlfriend lives and he collapsed," the screenshot reads.

^{Photo: The Atlantic}

^{Photo: The Atlantic}
In turn, Hegseth sent a message with the following content: “Great job, done. A few more strikes tonight, full report tomorrow. So far everything is according to plan, accurate hits on targets and so far so good.”

According to The Atlantic, it is still unknown why Goldberg joined this chat.

Goldberg said on March 24 that he accidentally joined a chat where US plans for an operation against the Houthis were being discussed. The chat included 18 people, including Walz, Hegseth, Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Vice President J.D. Vance and other White House officials. The Pentagon chief denied that military plans were sent through the chat. The national security adviser took responsibility for the incident, but stressed that he did not know Goldberg and did not have his number. US President Donald Trump said that Walz had drawn conclusions from it.

According to The Guardian, national security and intelligence commentators and experts in the US are seriously criticizing the discussion of secret military plans in such commercial chats. In their opinion, this is an unprecedented violation of operational security. The discussion of military operations via Signal may also violate the Espionage Act and the procedure for the retention of government documents. Because officials are required to communicate only through protected, special government channels.

In turn, Democrats in Congress have proposed criminalizing the editor-in-chief of The Atlantic for transmitting classified information via messengers, as he was given access to a chat room with high-ranking officials who discussed a strike on Yemen.