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The U.S. military will livestream the firing squad execution of Nidal Hasan, Pentagon officials confirmed on October 8, following comments by Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth that the event would be public. The execution is scheduled for December 3 at 1 p.m. at Fort Hood, Texas, the same location and approximate time as the 2009 attack, according to an Army statement released October 7. President Donald Trump approved the death sentence on October 2 after the Supreme Court declined review of the case in March 2025.
A Fort Hood survivor supports the gunman’s execution by firing squad but questions the livestream, the BBC reported this week. The survivor indicated that while the method delivers justice for the attack that killed 13 and injured 32, broadcasting it could retraumatize victims’ families and others connected to the tragedy. In an interview with Fox News, retired Staff Sgt. Alonzo Lunsford, who was shot several times including in the head during the assault, expressed his intention to witness the execution to help bring closure.
Hasan was convicted in 2013 of 13 counts of premeditated murder and 32 counts of attempted premeditated murder for the November 5, 2009, shooting at the Soldier Readiness Processing Center, a U.S. Army court-martial found. The former Army psychiatrist shouted “Allahu Akbar” before opening fire more than 140 times on unarmed soldiers and civilians preparing for deployment, according to witness accounts compiled by CBS Texas. The attack remains one of the deadliest mass shootings at a U.S. military installation, with victims including soldiers from multiple units who had recently returned from or were heading to overseas assignments.
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth told Real America’s Voice that the execution would use soldiers in a firing squad as it should be for such a crime. “We’ll make sure that people are able to watch it, that it’s public, because people need to understand that there’s serious consequences for these types of things,” Hegseth said. Pentagon spokesperson Sean Parnell stated that judgment day for Hasan has finally come, in a post confirming the approval.
Other survivors offered differing perspectives on whether to view the execution, a CBS Texas report found. One survivor, who lost five friends in the shooting, said she saw the destruction this man made and does not feel like she wants to see anymore death while hoping to support fellow survivors at the event. Lunsford told Fox News, “You live by the sword, you die by the sword” and that the execution sends a clear message that such activity will not be tolerated in the armed services.
Legal experts noted that Hasan could file a habeas petition in civilian court to delay the execution, an Associated Press report found. The last U.S. military execution occurred in 1961, with the last firing squad used by the Army in 1945, according to historical military records. Details on the livestream platform and access remain to be released by the Pentagon in the coming weeks.
