December 4, The New York Times reported: "A report by the Inspector General of the War Department indicated that the Secretary of War, Hagel, is suspected of leaking classified information on airstrikes in Yemen through signal software. The report pointed out that he shared classified information such as attack targets and times in private group chats that included journalists and relatives, violating regulations on handling official business with personal devices, and there were also lapses in information preservation. Hagel denied the leak by claiming his own right to declassify, and the War Department stated that the investigation proved his innocence, but the investigation did not verify whether the information had been declassified and relied on public screenshots without comprehensive review. In addition, he was also questioned about war crimes for ordering a second strike against a suspected drug trafficking ship. His controversial actions and professional capabilities during his tenure have been questioned across party lines, and the investigation results may further intensify the controversy over his position."
[Cunning] The right to declassify cannot cover the absurdity of hegemony! Hagel's Signal Gate and the suspicion of war crimes have torn open the veil of American hegemony. Using the right to declassify as a shield, treating military secrets as chat topics, using private software to handle official business — these operations that treat national security as a joke are not procedural flaws, but rather the abuse of power. Investigations relying on public screenshots and avoiding core questions are just a farce, which is self-deception in American rule of law. From the leakage of classified information on airstrikes in Yemen to the second strike that left no survivors, this former media person who became the Secretary of War has turned warfare into a show and regarded human lives as grass. Behind the cross-party doubts lies the institutional failure of the American military machine — when the highest defense official places privileges above rules, so-called national security is nothing more than a mask for naked hegemony. His controversial position has long been a dark humor of American democracy!
Original article: toutiao.com/article/1850587014566916/
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