Details of leaked Yemen strike plans

WASHINGTON — The Atlantic magazine on Wednesday published plans for US strikes in Yemen that its editor-in-chief received after he was mistakenly added to a chat group of top Trump officials.

Here are the key messages that appear to show details of an imminent US military operation against Iran-backed Huthi rebels in the country, and the real-time aftermath of the attacks.

Timing, weapons, target 

The chat group on instant messaging app Signal included Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, who messaged it at 11:44 am on March 15 -- the day of the strikes.

"Weather is FAVOURABLE. Just CONFIRMED w/CENTCOM we are a GO for mission launch," Hegseth wrote, referring to US Central Command, which is responsible for the Middle East.

He followed that up with a detailed timetable of which aircraft would be launching when.

Hegseth said the first F-18 warplanes would launch at 12:15 pm, with the first window for strikes starting an hour and a half later -- the same time that MQ-9 Reaper drones would be launched.

The "target terrorist" is at "his Known Location so SHOULD BE ON TIME," the Pentagon chief wrote.

More F-18s were set to launch at 2:10 pm in a second strike package, with drones over the target five minutes later.

"THIS IS WHEN THE FIRST BOMBS WILL DEFINITELY DROP, pending earlier 'Trigger Based' targets," Hegseth said.

The second wave of F-18 strikes was to start at 3:36 pm -- the same time that the first sea-based Tomahawk cruise missiles were to launch, the defense secretary wrote.

"We are currently clean on OPSEC," he added -- a reference to operational security, which in fact had been compromised due to the journalist's presence in the chat.

The aftermath 

At 2:00 pm, National Security Advisor Mike Waltz wrote to the group saying a Huthis' "top missile guy" was targeted.

"We had positive ID of him walking into his girlfriend's building and it's now collapsed," he wrote, indicating that the United States had detailed intelligence about the target's movements, and had apparently struck a residential building in an attempt to kill him.

Hegseth later wrote that additional strikes would follow.

"Great job all. More strikes ongoing for hours tonight, and will provide full initial report tomorrow. But on time, on target, and good readouts so far."

Trump administration's response

President Donald Trump and his administration have given contradictory responses to the growing scandal.

National Security Council spokesman Brian Hughes said on Monday the chat chain cited by The Atlantic appeared to be "authentic", but on Wednesday White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt dismissed the piece as a "hoax written by a Trump-hater".

Other top officials continued to downplay the significance of the security breach.

"No locations. No sources & methods. NO WAR PLANS. Foreign partners had already been notified that strikes were imminent. BOTTOM LINE: President Trump is protecting America and our interests," Waltz posted on X.

Hegseth had a similar message, writing on X: "No names. No targets. No locations. No units. No routes. No sources. No methods. And no classified information."

And Pentagon spokesman Sean Parnell said in a statement that "these additional Signal chat messages confirm there were no classified materials or war plans shared".

Hegseth "was merely updating the group on a plan that was underway and had already been briefed through official channels", Parnell said.