Trump Downplays Military Plan Leak in Group Chat Blunder

President Donald Trump faced criticism for the accidental inclusion of a journalist in a sensitive military strike planning chat. The error was labeled as a minor lapse by Trump, who defended his national security adviser. The incident raised concerns about the administration's communication practices.

President Donald Trump on Tuesday minimized the gravity of a mistake where sensitive military plans concerning Yemen's Houthis were shared with a journalist through a group chat. The incident, which included a reporter from The Atlantic, was described by Trump as a 'glitch' in his administration's otherwise secure operations.

Trump defended his national security adviser, Mike Waltz, insisting that the error 'turned out not to be a serious one.' An article by The Atlantic highlighted that Waltz accidentally added the magazine's editor-in-chief, Jeffrey Goldberg, to a sensitive chat involving 18 senior officials.

Despite the incident, Trump maintained confidence in Waltz, attributing the mistake to one of Waltz's aides. Critics, particularly Democratic lawmakers, have criticized the administration's use of the messaging app Signal for sensitive communications, demanding better safeguards for handling classified information.

(With inputs from agencies.)