Trump approves firing squad execution for Fort Hood shooter Nidal Hasan

President Donald Trump has approved the execution of former Army psychiatrist Nidal Hasan by firing squad for the 2009 Fort Hood mass shooting. If carried out on the reported date of December 3, 2026, it will be the first U.S. military execution in 65 years.

Pentagon spokesman Sean Parnell announced Monday that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth recommended the execution, which President Trump subsequently approved. CBS News reported that families of the victims received an email stating the execution is scheduled for December 3, 2026. The event is set to take place at the same Texas post where the 2009 attack occurred, though Parnell noted that Acting Army Secretary Adam Telle will officially set the time and place.

Hasan, now 56, was convicted of killing 13 people and wounding 32 others during a shooting spree at Fort Hood’s readiness center. According to Al Jazeera, Hasan admitted to the attacks during his court-martial, claiming he was attempting to protect fellow Muslims and stop deployments to Afghanistan. International reported that Hasan also told a judge his motivations were tied to defending the leadership of the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan.

The decision to use a firing squad follows a 2019 revision to Army regulations that removed "lethal injection" as the required method, leaving the choice to the secretary of the Army. International noted that the Supreme Court cleared the way for the execution in March 2025 by declining to hear Hasan's appeal. Since his 2013 conviction and sentencing, Hasan has been held on death row at Fort Leavenworth in Kansas.

The 2009 shooting involved Hasan firing 146 rounds at unarmed soldiers. CBS News reported that Hasan, who was an Army major at the time, was paralyzed from the chest down after being shot by police during the incident. Survivors and family members of the deceased have been contacted to ask if they wish to attend the execution.

Background

On November 5, 2009, Nidal Hasan opened fire at Fort Hood while shouting "Allahu Akbar," an attack analysts described as the worst shooting at a U.S. military base. The last U.S. military execution occurred in 1961, when Pvt. John Bennett was hanged for rape and attempted murder.