The FBI is investigating leaks of information surrounding Saturday's military strikes against Iran that ended up being reported by media outlets.
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth specifically mentioned CNN while outlining his concerns to reporters at the NATO summit in the Netherlands. Hegseth said, "So this is a political motive here."
Hegseth then responded affirmatively when asked if an investigation was underway.
"Of course, we're doing a leak investigation with the FBI right now, because this information is for internal purposes, battle damage assessments, and CNN and others are trying to spin it to make the president look bad when this was an overwhelming success," he said.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio and President Donald Trump were also involved in the briefing with reporters. Rubio characterized the effort to downplay the impact of the U.S. strikes against Iran as a game.
"That's the game these people play. They read it, and then they go out and characterize it the way they want it characterized, and they're leakers, this is the game they play," Rubio said.
Hegseth and Rubio did not specify what reporting may have been connected with the purported leak.
CNN reported on Wednesday that information it had received about the U.S. military strikes against Iran indicated the strikes may not have been as successful as earlier described by Hegseth and the president. CNN mentioned information related to a "battle damage assessment conducted by U.S. Central Command."
But with the FBI involved in tracking down those involved in leaked information, the game, as characterized by Rubio, can turn into something entirely different.
On Wednesday, Trump posted, "Secretary of Defense (War!) Pete Hegseth, together with Military Representatives, will be holding a Major News Conference tomorrow morning."
Trump said it was directly related to the leaked information and the impact on national security.
"The Fake News (Times and CNN) lied and totally misrepresented the Facts, none of which they had (because it was too soon, there were no Facts out there yet!). The News Conference will prove both interesting and irrefutable. Enjoy!" he wrote, referring to The New York Times.
The president said the media briefing on the issue would begin at 8 a.m. Thursday.
Trump ordered military strikes against Iran on Saturday following more than a week of attacks by Israel, which began its military action after negotiations with Iran over its ambitions to construct nuclear weapons fell apart. Hegseth on Tuesday asserted the attacks "obliterated" Iran's capability to construct nuclear weapons.
Jim Mishler ✉
Jim Mishler, a seasoned reporter, anchor and news director, has decades of experience covering crime, politics and environmental issues.
© 2025 Newsmax. All rights reserved.