Trump approves firing squad for convicted US military base shooter

President Donald Trump has approved the execution of Nidal Hasan, a US Army psychiatrist convicted of the 2009 Fort Hood shooting, by firing squad, according to the Pentagon. The execution will be the first carried out by the US military since 1961. The Pentagon spokesman, Sean Parnell, confirmed the decision, stating that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth recommended and President Donald J. Trump approved the death penalty for Hasan, described as a convicted terrorist.

The execution will be set by the Secretary of the Army. Hasan, a US-born Muslim of Palestinian descent, shot dead 13 people and wounded over two dozen others at a medical facility on Fort Hood in Texas in 2009, allegedly acting in support of Al-Qaeda. He chose to represent himself during his trial, calling no witnesses and giving no testimony.

Court-appointed defense attorneys had concerns about his desire for execution. The shooting at Fort Hood was the deadliest mass shooting on a US military base, with all victims and most victims being soldiers.