Pete Hegseth heckled by anti-war protesters at Army conference

U.S. Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth faced repeated interruptions from anti-war protesters during a panel on autonomous warfare at the Association of the United States Army (AUSA) annual meeting in Washington, D.C.

During the session, multiple demonstrators interrupted Hegseth at intervals, calling him a “war criminal,” a “coward,” and a “Nazi.” Protesters also cited the conflict in Gaza and the war with Iran as reasons for their demonstrations. Hegseth initially responded to the outbursts with sarcasm and humor, at one point quipping, “She thinks highly of me,” before later describing the disruptions as a “semi-coordinated” tactic.

Security personnel forcibly removed several protesters from the convention center. The AUSA issued a statement noting that while the right to protest is fundamental, the outbursts violated the code of conduct agreed upon by attendees. Despite the disruptions, Hegseth continued his remarks, asserting that the United States will do “what is necessary” to prevent Iran from acquiring nuclear weapons and discussing the Pentagon's push to scale autonomous and robotic military systems.