Trump says Fort Hood shooter's firing squad execution will not be livestreamed

US President Donald Trump said on Thursday, 15 October 2026, that the execution of Fort Hood shooter Nidal Hasan will not be livestreamed. The decision reverses a plan that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth announced the previous week.

Trump announced the change in a post on his Truth Social platform. "He will die, as scheduled, by firing squad, but this event will not be streamed," he wrote. In the same post, he said immediate family members of the victims may view the execution in person if they choose.

Hasan, a former US Army psychiatrist, killed 13 people in a 2009 shooting at the Fort Hood military base in Texas. According to the BBC, he also injured 32 people, and those killed were unarmed US soldiers. His execution by firing squad is scheduled for 3 December 2026.

It will be the first execution carried out by the US military in decades. The BBC and The Guardian say it is the first in more than 60 years. France 24 says it is the first by a US military firing squad since 1945.

The livestream plan drew criticism from Republican and Democratic politicians, rights groups and international observers. According to France 24, the Catholic Church and the United Nations were among the opponents. France 24 reported that, according to death penalty experts, a US government execution has never been broadcast or livestreamed.

Trump had previously said he "absolutely" supported the plan. The Guardian, citing Axios, reported that four people who had spoken with Trump said he had expressed private misgivings about it.

What is disputed

The reports differ on the location. DW says the execution will take place at the US military prison in Fort Leavenworth, Kansas. France 24 says it will take place at Fort Hood, Texas. The reports reviewed by Vocemundi do not include an official Pentagon statement settling this.

What each side says

Trump wrote that streaming "might have been a strong deterrent", but that "many very good and well meaning people would rather not watch him die".

Hegseth had argued the execution should be public. "Because people need to understand that there’s serious consequences for these types of things," he said, according to Al Jazeera. Critics cited by Al Jazeera said a public execution risks glorifying the attacker and inspiring copycats.

Vice-President JD Vance had said he would not watch a livestream.

Democratic Senator Elissa Slotkin of Michigan welcomed the reversal. "Good. So sick to have ever considered this," she wrote on X, according to The Guardian. The Guardian quoted Republican Senator John Curtis as calling it "the right move, both for the loved ones of the victims and for the country."

The reports do not include a Pentagon statement on the cancellation or a response from Hegseth.

Analysis

The reversal settles one question but leaves others open. The reports reviewed by Vocemundi give conflicting locations for the execution, with DW naming Fort Leavenworth, Kansas, and France 24 naming Fort Hood, Texas, and they do not say whether any recording will be made or kept. They also include no Defense Department response. Supporters of a public execution, including Hegseth, framed it as a deterrent. Critics in both parties argued it could glorify the attacker or turn executions into spectacle. The decision may ease some domestic and international criticism. It may also prompt questions about how such policies are decided between the White House and the Pentagon. The run-up to 3 December could bring further official clarification.

Produced by the Vocemundi newsroom with AI assistance.