US President Donald Trump has approved the execution of former Army Major Nidal Malik Hasan by firing squad for his role in the deadly 2009 mass shooting at Fort Hood, Texas.
The decision was announced by Pentagon spokesperson Sean Parnell on Monday, October 5, following a recommendation from Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth. The Secretary of the Army will determine the time and location of the execution.
Hasan, a former Army psychiatrist, was convicted of killing 13 people and wounding 32 others when he opened fire at the Texas military base on November 5, 2009.
Trump approves military firing squad for Nidal Hasan
In a statement posted on X, Parnell said Hegseth had recommended that Hasan be executed by a US Army firing squad and that Trump had approved the recommendation.
“Secretary of War Pete Hegseth has recommended, and President Donald J. Trump has approved, death by U.S. Army firing squad for convicted terrorist Nidal Malik Hasan, the jihadist who opened fire on unarmed American soldiers at Fort Hood in 2009. He killed 13 people and wounded 32 others while shouting “Allahu Akbar” during the attack,” he wrote.
“The Secretary of the Army will set the time and place of the execution. Judgment day for Hasan has finally come,” he added.
Nidal Hasan sentenced to death
Hasan was sentenced to death in August 2013 after a military jury convicted him of 13 counts of premeditated murder and 32 counts of attempted premeditated murder.
During his court-martial, Hasan represented himself and made little effort to contest the evidence against him. He acknowledged carrying out the shooting and said he wanted to prevent US soldiers from deploying to Afghanistan and fighting Muslims.
The attack occurred at a medical facility at Fort Hood, where soldiers were undergoing preparations for deployment. Hasan was shot by a civilian police officer responding to the attack and was left partially paralyzed.
What happened during the Fort Hood shooting?
On November 5, 2009, Hasan opened fire inside a medical processing facility at Fort Hood, one of the largest US military installations.
The shooting killed 13 people, including 12 active-duty soldiers and one retired serviceman, while 32 others were wounded.
Hasan was arrested at the scene after being shot by police.
The attack happened shortly before he was scheduled to deploy to Afghanistan. During his trial, he said his actions were intended to stop US troops from going to Afghanistan and killing fellow Muslims.
If carried out, Hasan’s execution would be the first US military execution since 1961, when Army Pvt. John Bennett was hanged at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas.
Firing squads have also been extremely uncommon in the United States. The method has been used in a small number of modern civilian executions, while the US military has not executed a service member by firing squad in decades.
