Trump Cancels Live Broadcast of Army Psychiatrist Nidal Hasan’s Execution

United States President Donald Trump has cancelled plans to live-stream the execution by firing squad of former Army psychiatrist Nidal Hasan, who killed 12 soldiers and one civilian in a 2009 mass shooting at Fort Hood, Texas. The execution, scheduled for December 3 at Fort Hood, will proceed without public broadcast, according to a statement posted by Trump on Truth Social.

The initial proposal to stream the execution drew swift condemnation across the political spectrum in the United States and internationally, with opposition from both Democratic and Republican politicians, human rights organizations, the United Nations, and the Catholic Church. Vice President James David Vens publicly questioned whether the live-stream would occur and stated he would not watch it.

Trump defended his initial view that a broadcast could serve as a deterrent, stating it might be a powerful deterrent, with the world seeing how America deals with terrorists and trash like Hasan. However, he reversed the decision because many very good and well-meaning people would rather not see him die, while noting that immediate family members of the victims could still witness the execution in person if they chose.

Hasan, an American-born Muslim of Palestinian descent, carried out the November 9, 2009, attack at a medical facility at Fort Hood, killing 12 soldiers and one civilian while wounding 30 others. A military jury convicted Hasan in 2013 and sentenced him to death for the Al Qaeda-inspired attack. Throughout his trial, Hasan represented himself without calling witnesses or offering a defense.

The upcoming execution marks the first time U.S. armed forces have carried out a death sentence since 1961. The last execution of a U.S. service member by firing squad within the military justice system took place in 1945. Furthermore, the last entirely public execution in the United States occurred in 1936, when a man was hanged before thousands of spectators in Kentucky.

Pentagon press secretary Sean Parnell announced the formal approval of the execution on the platform X, quoting the defense minister Pete Hegseth’s recommendation. The day of reckoning has finally come for Hassan, Parnell wrote, adding that the army minister would determine the precise time and location for the sentence to be carried out at the Texas base. While the general public and media will not view the event via live-stream, surviving victims and families of the deceased retain access options as determined by military oversight.

Only close relatives of the victims will be allowed to watch the execution in person at Fort Hood, provided they choose to attend.

The U.S. armed forces last carried out an execution in 1961, while the last military execution by firing squad occurred in 1945.

The attack took place at a medical facility inside the Fort Hood army base in Texas on November 9, 2009.

More on this story: Pentagon to Livestream Firing Squad Execution of Fort Hood Shooter Nidal Hasan · US to Publicly Execute Nidal Hasan by Firing Squad on Dec 3

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