The US government has reportedly subjected roughly 50 members of the military’s Joint Staff to lie detector tests as investigators hunt for officials suspected of leaking classified information to journalists, including details about dwindling US ammunition supplies during the war with Iran.
People familiar with the effort said the broad testing appeared intended not only to identify those who may have shared information but also to deter others from providing information to journalists. In a statement, Pentagon spokesman Sean Parnell said that the department “does not comment on internal personnel or investigative matters but takes all leaks of classified national security information extremely seriously and investigates accordingly.”
The leak investigations have added to an atmosphere of distrust and paranoia inside the Pentagon, according to current and former officials, who say the environment has been encouraged by Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth. The journalists said they believed the dismissals were retaliation for their reporting on worsening conditions aboard the USS Abraham Lincoln. The breadth of the investigation is highly unusual. Mass polygraph testing has never been administered to the senior ranks of the US military in modern history, the report further added. Last month, the Defence Department fired the publisher and editor-in-chief of Stars and Stripes, a government-funded news organisation covering the US military.
He has also gone beyond efforts to stop unauthorised disclosures, calling media coverage critical of the US handling of the Iran war and its weapons shortages “treasonous”. The investigation comes as several news organisations have published details about the impact of the Iran war on US weapons stockpiles, along with concerns within the administration over the strategic direction of the conflict. President Trump has pushed administration officials to aggressively pursue those responsible for leaks.
