Speaking as a former naval aviator (515 missions during the Vietnam War), the content of the Signal texts that the Atlantic published categorically refute Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth’s assertion that no classified information was discussed. Here’s why the texts’ references to the attack were top secret:

Sen. Chuck Grassley said he didn't read transcripts of the text messages and "probably won't" but said they weren't classified information.

The White House continued to downplay the seriousness of the incident, parsing semantics and attacking the journalist who was inadvertently added to the chat.

A Pentagon-wide advisory that went out one week ago warned against using Signal, the messaging app, even for unclassified information.

Sue Gordon, former principal deputy national intelligence director, said the Trump administration needs to deal with any "persistent risk" to communications following the Signal chat leak.

The stunning news that the editor-in-chief of the Atlantic was accidentally included on a Signal chat where Trump defense and intelligence officials including Vice

The military takes extraordinary measures to keep combat operations secret, cutting off outside communications for service members before launching an attack.

Across Washington, the Signal leak presented a major test early ... handled investigations into the mishandling of classified or sensitive information by both Republican and Democratic ...

Attorney General Pam Bondi declined to say whether the Justice Department was investigating national security leaders’ use of Signal to discuss an airstrike, implying such an action may not be