Trump rules out livestreaming Hasan’s scheduled execution at Fort Hood

Developing story first seen 2 hours ago

Daily Mail · 2 hours ago

Donald Trump has reversed Pete Hegseth’s decision to livestream Nidal Malik Hasan’s scheduled execution, following criticism from politicians and the public. Trump said Hasan will still face a firing squad on 3 December, but the execution will not be streamed; victims’ immediate families may attend in person.

Hasan, a former US Army major, killed 13 people and wounded 32 in the 2009 Fort Hood attack, the deadliest attack on a US military installation. He was sentenced to death in 2013. A Washington Post-ABC-Ipsos poll found that 80 per cent of US adults opposed livestreaming the execution, which would have been the first public execution in the United States since 1937.

Trump has ruled out livestreaming Hasan’s execution.
The firing squad is still scheduled for 3 December.
80 per cent of US adults opposed a livestream.

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Fort Hood is a US Army base in Texas. In 2009, Army major Nidal Malik Hasan shot and killed 13 people there and wounded 32 others. A military court convicted him and sentenced him to death in 2013.

Hasan is held on the US Army’s death row, which has four inmates. The case concerns how the military carries out a death sentence and who may witness it. Public executions have not taken place in the United States since 1937, and broadcasting one would raise questions about privacy, public access and the treatment of victims’ families.

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The case for

Supporters of livestreaming could argue that an execution carried out by the state should be open to public scrutiny, with a recording helping demonstrate that officials followed the law and their procedures. They might also say that transparency honours the gravity of the crime and the victims, rather than shielding the state’s use of lethal force from public view.

The case against

Opponents could argue that broadcasting an execution would turn a judicial punishment into a spectacle, risking harm to victims’ families and degrading the dignity of everyone involved. They may regard public accountability as important but believe it can be secured through independent oversight and access for victims’ immediate families without livestreaming.

Full account

President Donald Trump has ruled out a livestream of Nidal Malik Hasan’s scheduled execution, reversing an earlier Pentagon announcement that the public would be able to watch. The former US Army major and psychiatrist is due to be executed by firing squad on 3 December. Trump said the execution would proceed as planned, while immediate family members of those killed could attend in person if they wished.

Hasan was convicted of killing 13 people and wounding 32 in a shooting at Fort Hood, Texas, in 2009. Trump argued that broadcasting the execution might deter terrorism, but said many people would not want to watch it. He also criticised the Obama administration over intelligence communications involving Hasan before the attack, calling the handling a failure.

The reversal followed a backlash after Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth said the execution would be public and Pentagon officials confirmed it would be streamed. Opposition came from politicians in both parties and religious leaders. Some critics said a broadcast would turn the victims’ suffering and Hasan’s death into a spectacle; a poll cited by one report found that 80 per cent of US adults opposed livestreaming it.

The reports agree that the execution is scheduled for 3 December and will not be livestreamed under Trump’s decision. They vary in emphasis: one highlights political criticism and polling, another gives more detail about Hasan’s trial and the possibility of a legal challenge delaying the execution, and a third focuses on religious opposition and practical questions about whether broadcasters or online platforms would carry a stream. The reports do not establish whether any in-person attendance will be open beyond the victims’ immediate families.

Where outlets differ

Source 1 foregrounds the bipartisan backlash, a poll finding that 80 per cent opposed a livestream, and Trump’s criticism of the Obama administration’s handling of intelligence.

Source 2 adds background on the attack and trial, says the execution would be the first US military execution in more than 65 years, and notes that a habeas corpus petition could delay it.

Source 3 highlights opposition from religious groups, including a statement by the president of the US Conference of Catholic Bishops, and raises questions about network and platform carriage. It also includes reader comments, which are not treated here as reported facts.

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Originally published by Daily Mail as “Trump cancels livestream for Fort Hood shooter’s firing squad execution in brutal blow to Pete Hegseth”.