Pentagon to livestream execution of Nidal Hasan by firing squad
Defense Secretary Pit Hegset said the execution is set for December 3 at Fort Hood; it would be the first public US execution in nearly a century.
The Pentagon announced it will livestream the execution of former U.S. Army major Nidal Hasan by firing squad, U.S. Defense Secretary Pit Hegset said. Hasan was sentenced to death after the November 5, 2009 attack at Fort Hood, Texas, in which he killed 13 unarmed American soldiers and wounded 32.
Hegset said the execution is scheduled to be carried out on December 3 at Fort Hood and that the public will be able to watch the procedure.
“We will make sure people can watch. People need to understand that there are serious consequences for these acts,” Hegset said.
Legal and historical context
If carried out as announced, the execution would be the first public execution in the United States in nearly a century and the first military execution by firing squad since World War II.
John Mills, a lawyer who works with death-row inmates, warned of the novelty and legal uncertainty surrounding the plan. “The decision to broadcast live is unprecedented in the modern era and sits on uncertain legal ground. I would be surprised if it actually is carried out,” Mills said.
Internationally, human-rights observers note that last year more than 2,700 death sentences were carried out across 17 countries; only two of those countries conducted public executions — 11 in Iran and six in Afghanistan.
Photo: Geti)
