Trump Cancels Livestream of Fort Hood Execution

Seventy-two retired US generals, admirals and other senior military officers have urged the US government to cancel plans to livestream the execution of Nidal Hasan, the Army psychiatrist convicted of killing 13 unarmed soldiers at Fort Hood. In an open letter released on Wednesday, they called the proposed broadcast a “barbaric abuse of authority” and warned it could make Hasan appear to be a martyr and expose American service members and civilians to future harm. The letter’s signatories said they do not oppose carrying out the death penalty, but argued that broadcasting an execution would violate constitutional protections against cruel and unusual punishment. They also warned that a public execution would turn a solemn punishment into entertainment for spectators and damage the military’s honor. The signers include 45 generals, 12 admirals and several former judge advocates general, among them officers who served during the Iraq and Afghanistan wars and some who retired during Donald Trump’s first term. The Pentagon announced last week that Hasan’s execution by firing squad, scheduled for 3 December, would be shown publicly. Trump said he “absolutely” approved of the livestream plan, although CBS News reported that he had not made a final decision as of Tuesday and that some administration officials were leaning against it. The plan has also drawn criticism from lawmakers in both parties, religious leaders, politicians, academics and other experts. If it goes ahead, it would be the first public execution in the United States in almost a century. Hasan admitted in court to carrying out the 2009 Fort Hood shooting, the deadliest non-combat attack on an American military base. He said he acted believing he was protecting Muslims and the Taliban in Afghanistan from the US military. He was wounded in the attack and now uses a wheelchair. Among the letter’s signatories are retired Major General Tony Taguba, who led an Army investigation into reported abuses at Abu Ghraib; retired Air Force Colonel Moe Davis, a former Guantanamo prosecutor who called waterboarding torture; former NASA administrator Charles Bolden; and retired Lieutenant General Claudia Kennedy, the Army’s first woman three-star general.

US President Donald Trump has cancelled plans to livestream the execution of former Army psychiatrist Nidal Hasan, who was convicted of killing 13 unarmed military personnel and injuring 32 others at Fort Hood, Texas, in 2009. Hasan is scheduled to be executed by firing squad on 3 December 2026; the execution will proceed, but it will not be broadcast. Trump said he had considered a livestream a possible deterrent, but that many people did not want to watch Hasan die. He added that victims’ families could attend in person if they wished. The Pentagon announced the execution and proposed livestream the previous week, prompting widespread criticism in the United States and abroad. The United Nations called the plan “abhorrent.” Public executions are rare: Amnesty International reported that 11 were known to have taken place in Iran in 2025 and six in Afghanistan. Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth had defended the broadcast, arguing that people should understand the consequences of such crimes. Trump initially supported the proposal, then said the Pentagon was still deciding, before cancelling it. A Pentagon spokesman said Hegseth supported the president’s decision and that they were aligned. John Galligan, a lawyer for Hasan on civil matters, said the original livestream proposal was a “dumb decision” and violated Army regulations. Galligan also said Hasan is paralysed from the chest down, and argued the controversy had already damaged the military justice system. Hasan’s execution would be the first US military execution in more than 60 years. US military law requires presidential approval and appellate review before an execution can proceed. Hasan opened fire in a crowded medical building where deploying soldiers were waiting for check-ups and vaccinations. At his 2013 court martial, he admitted he was the gunman, apologised for “any mistakes,” and said he believed he was protecting Muslims and the Taliban in Afghanistan from the US military. The 5 November 2009 killings were the deadliest non-combat attack on an American military base.

President Donald Trump said the execution of Nidal Malik Hasan, the former Army psychiatrist convicted of killing 13 people and injuring others in the 2009 Fort Hood shooting, will not be livestreamed. The announcement followed criticism from both Republican and Democratic lawmakers, retired military officers, rights groups and others after Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said the execution would be made public. Trump had argued on Truth Social that broadcasting it might deter terrorism, but also acknowledged that many people would not want to watch a person die. He said Hasan will be executed by firing squad as scheduled, with immediate family members of victims able to attend in person if they choose. The execution is scheduled for December 3 at the US military prison in Fort Leavenworth, Kansas. The article describes opposition to the proposed livestream. House Speaker Mike Johnson warned that it could become a recruiting tool for terrorists. More than 40 retired generals and admirals joined dozens of other retired military officers in an open letter arguing that a broadcast would damage the military’s honor and could turn Hasan into a martyr. Vice President JD Vance said he would not watch if the execution were livestreamed, while emphasizing the gravity of Hasan’s crimes. Hasan, then a major and Army psychiatrist, opened fire on fellow soldiers in a medical building at Fort Hood, Texas, on November 5, 2009, while they were waiting for deployment-related medical services. He shouted “Allahu akbar” as he fired. Hasan was shot by law enforcement and left paralyzed from the waist down; he now uses a wheelchair. At trial, he said he carried out the attack to protect Taliban members in Afghanistan from US troops. The article notes that the last US military execution of a service member took place in 1961, when John Bennett was hanged for rape and attempted murder.

France 24 reports on plans announced by US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth to livestream the execution of Nidal Hasan, identified in the article as the Fort Hood shooter. The announcement, made the previous week, has triggered opposition from Republicans in Congress, religious leaders and international observers. The report presents the proposal as highly unusual, including by the standards of a country that has long used capital punishment. According to death penalty experts cited in the report, no government execution has ever been broadcast or livestreamed. The article also notes that the US military has not carried out an execution by firing squad since 1945. These details underscore the exceptional nature of both the proposed public broadcast and the method of execution. France 24’s International Affairs Commentator Douglas Herbert provides further explanation in the video. The supplied page text does not include additional details about the rationale for the plan, the specific objections raised by its critics, or whether the proposal has been finalized. Accordingly, the report’s focus, as represented in the available text, is the backlash and the historical context that makes the proposed execution and livestream extraordinary.