ALBAWABA - NPR reported on Monday that the White House has begun the process of finding a new Secretary of Defense after current Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth became embroiled in a number of scandals.
The action is in reaction to claims that Hegseth used a private chat group to provide information about a March U.S. assault against Iran-backed Houthi forces in Yemen, an unidentified source told the site. Members of his legal staff and family are said to have been involved in the leak.
This news adds to the mounting worries about the Pentagon, which has been shaken by a string of high-level personnel terminations and security lapses. Politico claims that the department's operational integrity is now seriously in doubt due to the internal turmoil.
Pentagon spokesman Sean Parnell refuted allegations earlier today that Hegseth used a second Signal group conversation to distribute sensitive strike information. But this is the second time the Defense Secretary has been charged with sharing private military information over the unencrypted app.
Former President Donald Trump has openly said that he still supports Hegseth in spite of the mounting criticism. However, Hegseth's behavior and the overall stability of the Department of Defense's leadership have come under further scrutiny due to the growing pressure and the timing of the disclosures.
The Biden administration is taking the issue seriously, as seen by the recent surge of internal probes and Pentagon dismissals, which suggests that a leadership shift may be imminent.
