From 2024:

"In 2024’s The War on Warriors, Hegseth argues at length that US forces should ignore the Geneva conventions and other elements of international law governing the conduct of war."

“'What if we treated the enemy the way they treated us?” he asks. “Would that not be an incentive for the other side to reconsider their barbarism? Hey, Al Qaeda: if you surrender, we might spare your life. If you do not, we will rip your arms off and feed them to hogs.'”

He wrote a book in which he openly advocates for war crimes. Maybe, just maybe, it pays to believe him.

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2024/nov/25/pete-hegseth...