White House to replace Pete Hegseth as chief after second chat leak claim: Report

The White House has reportedly begun searching for a new Defence Secretary to replace Pete Hegseth, following explosive revelations that he leaked classified military information through private group chats on the encrypted app Signal.

The move comes on the heels of a New York Times expose on April 20, which revealed that Hegseth shared minute-by-minute details of US airstrikes on Houthi targets in Yemen via a private Signal group. Among the recipients were his wife, Jennifer — a former Fox News producer — his brother Phil, a senior Pentagon adviser, and Navy attorney Timothy Parlatore.

According to a senior US government official, the messages were sent from Hegseth's personal phone and contained real-time updates that could have compromised the mission and put the lives of US pilots at risk.

This is not the first such incident. In March, Hegseth reportedly shared similar sensitive information in another Signal chat that included top government officials. That group accidentally included Jeffrey Goldberg, editor-in-chief of The Atlantic, a publication openly critical of President Donald Trump.

The disclosure — dubbed 'Signalgate' by US media — sparked bipartisan outrage and raised serious national security concerns.

Officials warn that if adversaries had intercepted the information, it could have jeopardised active missions. The Houthis have previously downed two US predator drones, amplifying concerns about operational security.

As the Department of Defence experiences a “full-blown meltdown”, according to officials, more high-profile firings are expected.

Meanwhile, a day after New York Times report was published, Hegseth spoke at a White House Easter event and denied the allegations of a second 'Signalgate'. "This is what the media does. They take anonymous sources from disgruntled former employees, and then they try to slash and burn people, ruining their reputation. It's not going to work with me," he said.

Last week, three Pentagon senior advisers, Dan Caldwell, Colin Carroll, and Darin Selnick, were dismissed from office for leaking information and posted a joint statement on X calling their dismissal "unconscionable" and grounds unclear.