Trump refuted the report, calling it "the only minor glitch in two months and not a serious problem at all". He also said that Goldberg's presence in the chat "had no impact whatsoever" and that these attacks were "highly successful".
Image source: Visual China (File photo)
Previously, it was reported that someone was added to a classified chat group regarding the US military's combat plan to strike the Houthi rebels in Yemen by high - level US national security officials. The participants in the chat included the US vice - president, the defense secretary, and the director of the Central Intelligence Agency. These senior officials had a heated discussion about the air strikes on the Houthi rebels in Yemen and released the specific plan for the air strikes on Yemen in the group on the 15th, including details such as the targets, the order of attacks, and the weapons the US would deploy. Later, multiple targets of the Houthi rebels in Yemen were attacked by air.
In response, on March 25, a White House spokesperson on social media said that the person who reported this was known for "sensational" remarks. The spokesperson claimed that there was no discussion of war plans and no classified materials were sent to the chat group.
On the 24th, when answering questions, someone said, "I'm not a big fan of that magazine. To me, it's a magazine on the verge of collapse. I don't think it's much of a magazine... I can tell you, I know nothing about this. You're telling me this for the first time."
In the afternoon of the 24th, the White House admitted the leak incident. A National Security Council spokesperson said that the chat group seemed to be real. The White House also issued a statement saying that it was investigating the cause of the leak. On the same day, the defense secretary in the group argued that no one discussed any specific details of the air - strike operation in the chat group.
Regarding the disclosure of the leak of the US government's military strike plan against the Houthi rebels in Yemen, the US defense secretary said on the 24th that no one sent information about the war plan, and that was his entire response to the matter. He also called the person who made the disclosure a "discredited person" who had "spread rumors" multiple times.