The Pentagon will livestream the execution by firing squad of Nidal Hasan, the Fort Hood shooter who killed 13 people in 2009, scheduled for December 3, 2025. This marks the first military execution since 1961 and the first use of a firing squad since World War II. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth emphasized that the execution will be public to demonstrate serious consequences for such acts, reflecting a shift towards making executions more visible compared to historical practices.
Written locally by qwen2.5:14b on 2026-10-09,
using this article's own text rather than the other coverage of the
same event (that is the story summary below).
Story summary
In November 2009, Nidal Hasan, an Army psychiatrist and Muslim of Palestinian descent, killed 13 people and wounded 32 others at Fort Hood, Texas. Hasan had previously spoken online with radical cleric Anwar al-Awlaki and was opposed to the US military's occupations of Iraq and Afghanistan. In October 2023, Pentagon spokesperson Sean Parnell announced that President Donald Trump approved Secretary Pete Hegseth’s recommendation for Hasan's execution by firing squad, marking the first U.S. military execution since 1961. The Army will set a date within 60 to 150 days from the approval, though details are yet to be finalized. Hasan was convicted in 2013, choosing to represent himself and not contest his charges during the trial. Despite court-appointed defense attorneys' concerns that he sought execution, this decision ultimately led to his death sentence being upheld by a military jury. This case highlights enduring questions about military justice and capital punishment.
Written for “Fort Hood Shooter Execution Approval” on 2026-10-09,
grounded in this article and the 46 other(s) covering the same event.
Why this leaning score
The model judged this article politically coded and scored it +0.35, but all 3 of its quote(s) are attributed speech - words the article quotes from someone, not the article's own narration, so the score is not published.
Written under an earlier scoring contract, which gave a paragraph
rather than checkable quotes. Re-analysing this article replaces it.
Leaning score withheld for article 67231: attributed speech only · logged 2026-10-09
The execution by firing squad of convicted military base shooter Nidal Hasan will be livestreamed, a Pentagon official said Thursday, after U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said it would be carried out in “public.”
asserted
it → convict → public
Hasan, a U.S. Army psychiatrist, shot dead 13 people at Fort Hood in 2009.
asserted
Hasan → shoot → 2009
His execution will be the first by the U.S. military since 1961, and the first it has carried out by firing squad since the Second World War.
asserted
it → carry → War
“It will be livestreamed.
asserted
It → livestreame → ?
Details will follow,” the Pentagon official told AFP on condition of anonymity.
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official → follow → anonymity
Hegseth had said in a video posted on X by official Pentagon accounts earlier Thursday that Hasan is “going to get a firing squad of soldiers, as it should be, and we’ll make sure that people are able to watch it, that it’s public.”
asserted
it → say → it
“People need to understand that…there’s serious consequence for these types of things,” Hegseth told right-wing influencer Jack Posobiec while aboard the USS Abraham Lincoln aircraft carrier.
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Hegseth → need → carrier
Hegseth noted that it would be the military’s first firing squad execution since the Second World War — a reference to the case of Eddie Slovik, who was put to death for desertion in 1945.
asserted
who → note → 1945
“I kind of like the mentality we had in World War II, which was win, which was understand when the enemy attacks you, you need to stand your ground,” Hegseth said.
asserted
Hegseth → like → ground
In a separate clip, Posobiec asked the Pentagon chief if Hasan had made any final request.
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Hasan → ask → request
We’ll see him on December 3,” Hegseth said — the day Hasan is slated to die.
asserted
Hasan → see → December
The last U.S. military execution was carried out in 1961, when John Bennett was hanged for rape and attempted murder.
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Bennett → carry → rape
According to rights group Amnesty International, at least 17 public executions are known to have been carried out in 2025 — six in Afghanistan and 11 in Iran.
uncertain
executions → accord → Iran
The Death Penalty Information Center says that 135 soldiers have been executed by the U.S. military since 1916.
asserted
soldiers → say → 1916
The Pentagon announced earlier this week that U.S. President Donald Trump had approved Hasan’s execution for carrying out the al-Qaida inspired attack.
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Trump → announce → attack
Twelve of those he killed and 30 of the wounded were soldiers.
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he → kill → wounded
Hasan was shot and partially paralyzed by a civilian police officer who responded to the attack.
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who → shoot → attack
He was sentenced to death by a military jury in 2013.
asserted
He → sentence → 2013
Hasan chose to conduct his own defence during the trial but called no witnesses and gave no testimony, and made no attempt to deny the charges.
asserted
Hasan → choose → charges
Court-appointed defence attorneys expressed concern that he was seeking execution.
asserted
he → appoint → execution
The court that convicted Hasan was told he was opposed to the U.S. military’s occupations of Iraq and Afghanistan, and that he had spoken online with an alleged Al-Qaida figure, radical cleric Anwar al-Awlaki, an American citizen subsequently killed in a U.S. drone strike in Yemen.
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he → convict → Yemen
In 2025, a soldier opened fire at a U.S. military base in the state of Georgia, wounding five fellow troops before he was tackled and apprehended.
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he → open → troops
In 2019, a U.S. sailor fatally shot two people and wounded a third at a base in Hawaii, while a Saudi military student shot dead three people at a military facility in Florida the same year.
asserted
student → shoot → Florida
And a Kuwaiti-born U.S. citizen attacked two military installations in Tennessee in 2015, killing four Marines and a sailor.
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citizen → bear → Marines
The FBI concluded the violence was inspired by a “foreign terrorist group.”
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violence → conclude → group
The Aporia
