President Donald Trump has approved the execution of Fort Hood shooter Nidal Malik Hasan by a U.S. Army firing squad, a step toward what would be the first military execution of a U.S. service member in more than six decades, the Pentagon announced Monday night.
“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,” Pentagon spokesman Sean Parnell said in a statement.
Hasan, an Arab-American and former Army psychiatrist, was convicted of killing 13 people and wounding 32 others in the November 2009 shooting at Fort Hood, Texas. Prosecutors said he shouted “Allahu Akbar” during the rampage.
Trump’s stamp of approval follows a pledge from Hegseth, who said in September that he was committed to carrying out Hasan’s death sentence.
“I am 100% committed to ensuring the death penalty is carried out for Nidal Hasan,” Hegseth previously said. “The victims and survivors deserve justice without delays.”
In a one-word post Monday, Hegseth said: “Justice.”
The Secretary of the Army will determine the time and location of the execution.
“Judgment day for Hasan has finally come,” the Pentagon added.
The military has not executed a service member since 1961, when John Bennett was put to death for the rape and attempted murder of an 11-year-old girl in Austria, according to ABC News.
This is a developing story.
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