Trump Approves Firing Squad Execution for 2009 Fort Hood Shooter
US President Donald Trump approved the execution by firing squad of Nidal Malik Hasan, convicted of the 2009 Fort Hood mass shooting. This marks the first US military execution since 1961.
US President Donald Trump has officially approved the execution by firing squad of Nidal Malik Hasan, an army psychiatrist who carried out a mass shooting at Fort Hood, Texas, in 2009, killing 13 people. This will mark the first military execution carried out by the US armed forces themselves since 1961.
The Pentagon announced that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth recommended and President Trump approved the death penalty via firing squad, with the exact date and location to be determined. Hasan, a US-born Muslim of Palestinian descent, opened fire on November 5, 2009, at the military base while shouting "Allahu Akbar," injuring 32 others. He was eventually neutralized by a civilian police officer, leaving him paralyzed from the waist down.
Ideological Motives and Trial
During his 2013 military trial, where he chose to represent himself, Hasan stated that he carried out the attack to protect Muslim lives in Iraq and Afghanistan, inspired by al-Qaeda and radical cleric Anwar al-Awlaki. He was subsequently sentenced to death by a military jury.
Hasan's day of reckoning has finally arrived, the Pentagon stated following the historic approval.
Capital Punishment Methods in the US
Only five US states currently permit execution by firing squad: Idaho, Mississippi, Oklahoma, South Carolina, and Utah. The decision comes amid ongoing national debates regarding the efficacy and humaneness of various execution methods, such as lethal injections.
