'Glitch' comment may be closest we'll come to Trump admitting his team messed uppublished at 21:45 Greenwich Mean Time 25 March

21:45 GMT 25 March

published at 21:45 25 March

21:45 25 March

Nomia Iqbal
North America correspondent

Image source, Getty Images

The fact that President Trump called this Signal group chat incident a "glitch" is the closest we will probably get to him admitting this was a mess up.

He went on to to say "Michael Waltz has learned a lesson". But there are reports that the president is frustrated with his national security adviser - and it's not hard to see why.

This is more than a serious breach of national security.

This raises claims against the government which the president doesn't want - questions around whether his security officials are incompetent.

The Democrats have already described the group as inexperienced and said they don't know what they're doing. They will certainly point to this episode as proof of that.

This scandal is also fairly easy for the public to understand - people using emojis as they chat in a group message, we all do it - but in this instance it is the people responsible for keeping the US safe and secure.

"It's just something that can happen," Trump said about Waltz apparently adding a reporter to the chat by accident.

This is, of course, not the first time that Trump and his team have been accused of mishandling classified information. And this report coming from a journalist that Trump has criticised in the past, Jeffrey Goldberg, brings the president back to familiar ground - attacking the "fake news" media.

Speaking alongside Waltz, who he said has no need to apologise, Trump criticised Goldberg as "basically very bad" for the US.

• We are ending our live coverage of Signal group chat leak for now. You can stay up to date on the latest developments in this story here: Trump and intelligence chiefs play down Signal group chat leak

Graham Fraser
Technology reporter

Signal, compared with other messaging apps, has added security features to protect the privacy of its users.

Conversations on the app are end-to-end encrypted, which means they can only be read by the recipients. Signal can’t even read what has been sent.

But security is only as good as the person using it.

The Editor in Chief of The Atlantic Jeff Goldberg was somehow added to a group chat which apparently included senior figures discussing a sensitive military operation in Yemen.

Social media expert Matt Navarra says it appears there was no breach in Signal’s technology, but the incident was caused by human error.

He told me: "Once added, then they [Goldberg] could read hundreds of messages that weren’t meant for them. It’s the equivalent of walking into a classified meeting room because someone forgot to close the door.

"This incident really does expose the weak link in even the most secure platforms - user behaviour. No app can protect against mistakes like adding the wrong contact to a group chat."

Image source, Getty Images

Here's a quick recap of what some of the key players in he leaked Signal chat saga have said about the topic so far:

Jeffrey Goldberg: The Atlantic magazine journalist reported on Monday that top Trump aides had accidentally added him to a chat on the Signal app, in which the officials discussed upcoming US plans to bomb Yemen and congratulated each other after Washington launched a series of strikes against the Houthi rebel group. Goldberg reports that the chat included classified information, including the name of a CIA agent, the types of weapons the US planned to use, and specific targets.

Donald Trump: President Trump has defended his National Security Adviser, Mike Waltz, who reportedly added Goldberg to the chat, but adding that he "probably" won't be using Signal again. He also argued that no classified information was shared in the chat.

Mike Waltz: Trump's national security adviser, whom Goldberg says was in the chat, speaking alongside Trump earlier, said it would be best for all parties to be in the room together for sensitive government matters. He also attacked Goldberg, saying he had "never met" him, and "never communicated" with him.

Pete Hegseth: The US defence secretary, whom Goldberg says was in the chat, told reporters "nobody was texting war plans". He also attacked Goldberg as "a deceitful and highly discredited so-called journalist who's made a profession of peddling hoaxes time and time again".

John Ratcliff: The CIA director, whom Goldberg says was in the chat, testified to Congress on Tuesday, saying that using Signal is "permissible" for US spies and denied accusations from Democrats that Trump's officials had made a "huge mistake".

Republican Senator Roger Wicker: The chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee said his committee will investigate the group chat leak, saying the members would need full access to the group chat's transcript. "I expect we'll have the full cooperation of the administration," he said.

Republican Senator Ted Cruz: The Texas lawmaker told BBC News that "it was obviously a mistake" for Goldberg to have been included in the chat. But he applauded the decision to attack the Houthis, saying: "What the entire text thread is about is President Trump directed his national security team take out the terrorists and open up the shipping lanes. That's terrific."

Democratic Senator Richard Blumenthal: The member of the Senate Armed Services Committee is among scores of outraged Democrats calling for Trump aides to be fired for accidentally leaking US military plans. He called the leak "appalling and astonishing", and told the BBC that some Republicans are privately criticising the White House.

Democratic Senator Chuck Schumer: The highest-ranking Democrat in the Senate told reporters that the US defence secretary had "showed a colossal lack of judgement" and may have even put US troops in danger. He called for a bipartisan investigation and said that Republicans "must not shrug their shoulders and call this incident 'one of those learning moments'".

Image source, Getty Images

11 March

The Atlantic magazine's editor-in-chief Jeffrey Goldberg receives a connection request on Signal from someone called "Michael Waltz" - the name of the US national security advisor. Two days later, he is notified he is to be included in a Signal group chat called the "Houthi PC small group".

At first, Goldberg thinks he might be the victim of a hoax. Here is what he says happens next:

14 March

08:05: What Goldberg calls a "fascinating policy discussion" starts on the chat.

08:16: An account appearing to belong to Vice-PresidentJD Vance says he thinks the other participants are making a mistake in going ahead with air strikes on Yemen at that time: "I am not sure the president is aware how inconsistent this is with his message on Europe right now."

08:26: A message appears from "John Ratcliffe" - the name of the CIA director - which Goldberg says "contained information that might be interpreted as related to actual and current intelligence operations".

08:45: The account identified as "JD Vance" addresses a message to another account with the name of Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth: "If you think we should do it let's go. I just hate bailing Europe out again."

08:48: The user identified as Hegseth responds: "VP: I fully share your loathing of European free-loading. It’s PATHETIC. But Mike is correct, we are the only ones on the planet (on our side of the ledger) who can do this."

09:35: A message from some called SM - presumed to be deputy White House chief of staff Stephen Miller - "effectively shut down the conversation", Goldberg says.

15 March

11:44: The account labelled "Pete Hegseth" posts in Signal a "TEAM UPDATE" - which Goldberg says "could conceivably have been used to harm American military and intelligence personnel".

He says it includes "operational details of forthcoming strikes on Yemen, including information about targets, weapons the US would be deploying, and attack sequencing."

The "Hegseth" account says the first detonations in Yemen would be felt at 13:45 US eastern time.

13:55: Goldberg checks X and searches for mentions of Yemen, where social media users are now posting that explosions are said to be heard across Sanaa, the capital city.

That's when Goldberg says he concludes the messages were really from the officials they claim to be from, and he leaves the chat.

Image source, Getty Images

The chair of the Senate's armed services committee, Republican Roger Wicker, confirms the committee will investigate the Signal group chat leak.

Speaking to reporters in the Capitol, Senator Wicker says he wants the investigation to be bipartisan and for the committee to have full access to the group chat's transcript.

"We need to find out if it's completely factual, and then make recommendations," he told the NewsNation network. "But I expect we'll have the cooperation of the administration."

Earlier, Donald Trump dismissed the group chat leak as a "glitch".

Image source, Getty Images

We can now bring you some reaction from House Democrats, who have voiced their disdain at the Houthi strike chat leaks on Signal.

"Loose lips sink ships," says Mike Thompson, who represents California's fourth congressional district in the House of Representatives.

He leans on his own experience, having previously served in the US army, adding that the ongoing situation following the Houthi air strike chat leak was a "textbook perfect example", adding: "The idea that you would go on an unsecured platform to talk about a military invasion, it just absolutely mind boggling".

Thompson is not alone. Congressman Seth Moulton from Massachussets says that had anyone else done what the top security and defence personnel in the country did, the consequences would be catastrophic.

"If any guardsman at any level, including the most junior private, had done what Pete Hegseth did, he would not only be fired, would not only lose his security clearance, but he would probably be criminally prosecuted," Moulton says.

Image source, Houthi Media Center

As we've been reporting, White House officials were discussing war plans, external against rebels in Yemen in a chat which included a journalist on a messaging app known as Signal.

The US became involved in Yemen shortly after the Houthis - an Iran-backed rebel group which controls large parts of the country - began attacking ships in the Red Sea in response to Israel's military campaign in Gaza. Israel began striking the territory after Hamas's 7 October 2023 attacks.

The rebel group initially said it was targeting ships connected with Israel, or heading to or from there. However, many of the vessels have had no connection with Israel.

The US under the Biden administration started carrying out air strikes on Houthi targets in January 2024 in order to protect trade.

Upon his return to the Oval Office, Donald Trump promised a tougher stance against the Houthis and their Iranian backers, authorising a wave of strikes killing dozens, according to the Houthis' health ministry, including in Yemen's capital, Sanaa.

Bernd Debusmann Jr
Reporting from the White House

I've been exchanging messages with Mick Mulroy, a former deputy assistant secretary of defence and retired CIA paramilitary officer to talk about the journalist added to a Signal chat of US officials.

Mulroy noted that the name of the chat - Houthi PC Small Group - indicated that "they need to scale down the principals group because the information is so sensitive".

"Doing a PC Small Group on an unsure commercial application is unacceptable," he sad. "And everyone on that chat knew it".

Of particular concern would be information on targeting, strike timing and weapons systems - which Mulroy said would have always been classified.

"You do not need to be a member of the military or intelligence community to know that this information is exactly what the enemy would want to know," he added. "It clearly does put our military members at risk."

Additionally, Mulroy noted that one of the group's members, envoy Steve Witkoff, was traveling to Russia as the chat was created.

There, he would have been a "prime target in an adversarial controlled environment."

"This is a national security issue," he said. "And like all national security issues, it should not be partisan."

Image source, Getty Images

A month before the breach of Signal group chat of high-level US officials was revealed, the National Security Agency (NSA) sent out an operational security special memo to its employees cautioning them about using the encrypted messaging application, the BBC's US partner CBS News reports, citing internal NSA documents.

"A vulnerability has been identified in the Signal Messenger Application," the agency said in February. "The use of Signal by common targets of surveillance and espionage activity has made the application a high value target to intercept sensitive information."

The memo warned that Russian hackers were using phishing scams to get access to conversations on the application and bypassing encryption.

The agency also said that the application - as well as WhatsApp - were permitted for unclassified uses but not for communicating about more sensitive information, CBS reports.

Cai Pigliucci
Reporting from Capitol Hill

Image source, Reuters

We've been roaming the halls on Capitol Hill to speak to people in the wake of what's now being dubbed "Signalgate".

We caught up with Democratic Senator Richard Blumenthal from Connecticut who called the accidental leak of information "appalling and astonishing".

It's not surprising to hear that characterization from a Democrat, with many Republicans appearing less critical. Republicans have called this a learning experience and have tried to pivot the focus onto what they see as a successful result from the conversations on Signal (specifically, carrying out an attack on the Houthis in Yemen).

But notably, Blumenthal also said that while Republicans are publicly "bending to Trump's will," some are being "more forthright" privately.

Now, Republican Senate Majority Leader John Thune has called it "inappropriate" and that they will work to get to the bottom of it. He says he expects the Senate Armed Services Committee to look into this.

Senator Blumenthal, who sits on the Armed Services Committee, told the BBC that "Republicans know how potentially disastrous this could have been in terms of disclosing our targets, munitions, claims, timing to our enemies."

And with that, Trump has finished taking questions from reporters. After being pressed by several journalists about what led to the Signal chat leak – and whether anyone would face consequences – Trump mostly repeated remarks he and other officials have already made about the controversy.

He said none of his officials – including National Security Adviser Mike Waltz – were to blame and said that this type of issue can happen with the technology.

He said he knew "nothing" about the Signal app but said Waltz would "probably" not be using it again.

He continued to claim that no classified information was shared on the thread and called the attack on the Houthis a big success.

Image source, Getty Images

Trump continues to be pressed by reporters about the Signal group message leak, with one person asking whether officials could be fired over the incident.

"We've pretty much looked into it," Trump says. "It's just something that can happen."

Asked whether Mike Waltz should apologise for the leak, Trump says Waltz is "doing his best" with "equipment and technology that's not perfect". He adds that Waltz is "probably" not going to be using the application again, with Waltz chiming in saying it's best to get everyone in a room together.

Trump moves on to The Atlantic Editor Jeff Goldberg, who he says "found it very boring and left early".

Asked if he's okay for the administration to keep using Signal, he says: "That's not what I said... I said we'll look into it.

"If it was up to me, everybody would be sitting in a room together, the room would have solid lead walls, a lead ceiling and a lead floor.

"But life doesn't always let you do that," he adds.

Asked about an investigation, Trump says again: "We'll look into it, sure".

Image source, Getty Images

Reporters are continuing to press Trump about the Signal group leaks. One asks the president whether government officials will continue to use the application to communicate.

Trump tells reporters he doesn't "know anything about" the application, though he adds that he believes many groups including the military and the media use it.

"Sometimes somebody can get onto those things," he said. "That's one of the prices you pay when you're not sitting in the situation room with no phones on. That's always the best, frankly."

Trump also claims that there was no classified information shared in the message chain, as many of his officials have also said.

Trump jumps in after Walz, saying that the Houthis are "absolutely on the run" and "the worst of them have been killed".

The US president says the offensive should have been done "a long time ago by [former President] Biden".

Trump goes on to point the finger at Iran, telling reporters that part of the blame for what's happening at the Red Sea can be attributed to Tehran for giving its support to the Houthis.

Last week, Trump said Iran will face "dire" consequences if Yemen's Houthis continue to attack international shipping lanes.

Bernd Debusmann Jr
Reporting from the White House

Trump and his national security adviser, Mike Waltz, have shrugged off a question on what lessons should be learnt from Signal-gate.

Asked a question by CNN's Kaitlan Collins, Trump said only that the White House has "an amazing group" dealing with national security, which he added is "stronger than it's ever been".

The attacks in Yemen, he said, have been "very, very successful".

The president then prompted Waltz to speak - and he immediately attacked the media, including Atlantic editor-in-chief Jeffrey Goldberg, the man who was inadvertently added to the group chat.

Waltz said he had "never met", doesn't know and has "never communicated" with Goldberg.

"[Goldberg] wants the world talking about more hoaxes" rather than "freedom" or "knockout out terrorists", Waltz said.

Trump then attacking Goldberg as well, saying he believes he is "basically very bad" for the US.

The president adds that he will "look into" what happened.

Bernd Debusmann Jr
Reporting from the White House

Just a few moments ago, CNN's Kaitlan Collins attempted to ask Trump a question about Mike Waltz.

He quickly shut her down, telling her he hadn't "called on" her.

So far, we've not heard anything about Signal-gate.

Bernd Debusmann Jr
Reporting from the White House

Donald Trump is currently at the White House, speaking alongside some of his picks to serve as ambassadors overseas.

National Security Adviser Mike Waltz – who appears to have added the Atlantic reporter to the Signal chat – is among those gathered in the Cabinet Room of the White House.

So far, the Signal chat has not come up.

But Trump and other officials have repeatedly defended the actions of those involved in the chat, with Trump in particular defending Waltz in an interview with NBC earlier today.

Image source, Reuters

President Donald Trump is speaking publicly now, as he signs new executive orders and meets with new US ambassadors. So far he hasn't mentioned the talking point of the day - the chat leak.

Will Scharf, the White House staff secretary, announces which executive orders Trump is going to be signing, including a pardon for Devon Archer an ex-business partner of former President Joe Biden's son Hunter, who shared information with lawmakers about Hunter's business dealings and was later prosecuted for fraud.

What have Trump officials said about classified information before?published at 18:39 Greenwich Mean Time 25 March

18:39 GMT 25 March

published at 18:39 25 March

18:39 25 March

Image source, Getty Images

By Jake Horton

Several of the Trump officials apparently included in the Signal chat have previously criticised other people for their handling of classified information.

In June 2023, Trump’s National Security Adviser Mike Waltz - who appears to have added the Atlantic journalist to the chat - criticised President Biden’s National Security Adviser, external for sending "top secret emails" to a private account.

In January 2023, US Secretary of Defence Pete Hegseth, who was a Fox News host at the time, criticised Biden as "nefarious, sloppy and dumb" after classified documents were found in his garage.

Talking about the same incident, Trump’s Secretary of State Marco Rubio said: "Any time documents have been removed from their proper setting it's a problem, I don't care who did it."

And earlier this month US Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard, when posting about government leaks, external, said that "any unauthorized release of classified information is a violation of the law and will be treated as such".