Donald Trump and his advisers are reconsidering plans to livestream the December 3 execution of Nidal Hasan.
Trump has reportedly expressed reservations after learning that Hasan is paralysed from the waist down.
Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth had announced the livestream plan but the Pentagon is reviewing the proposal.
US President Donald Trump and his advisers are reconsidering plans to livestream the execution of Nidal Hasan, the former Army psychiatrist convicted of killing 13 people and wounding dozens more in the 2009 Fort Hood shooting, CNN reported on Tuesday. Trump has privately expressed reservations after learning that Hasan is paralysed from the waist down and uses a wheelchair, according to two sources familiar with the discussions.
Trump was reportedly unaware that Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth had announced plans to let the public watch the execution. Although the president backed the decision to execute Hasan by firing squad, he was initially unsure how to approach the proposed broadcast, the sources told CNN.
Hegseth confirmed the livestream plan in a post on X last week. Trump subsequently consulted advisers and allies about whether the execution should be shown publicly.
The execution is scheduled for December 3 at Fort Hood, Texas. If carried out, it would be the US Army’s first execution of a soldier since World War II and the first time in 65 years that a death penalty has been imposed on an active-duty service member.
Trump Weighs Public Broadcast Against Propaganda Concerns
Trump acknowledged on Saturday that he was considering arguments both for and against broadcasting the execution.
“He was vicious. He was violent,” Trump told reporters, referring to Hasan. “There are two thoughts: Don’t show it and show it. Because, you know, by showing it, maybe other people won’t be doing what he did. So, I’ll make a decision ultimately. I know what the military would like to do, but we’ll make a decision.”
According to CNN, one adviser said Trump had also considered concerns that a public execution could provide propaganda material for terrorist groups and foreign adversaries seeking to portray Hasan as a martyr.
The Pentagon is separately reviewing the livestream plan, a source familiar with the discussions told CNN. Even if a broadcast goes ahead, it could be cut before the shots are fired, partly to prevent the execution from becoming propaganda material.
Hegseth’s office had not responded to CNN’s requests for comment on whether the plans had changed as of the report.
The proposal has faced bipartisan criticism, with officials across the Pentagon and the Army reportedly caught off guard by the announcement. Trump told reporters on Friday that he had not been involved in the initial decision but understood the reasoning behind it, saying some people wanted to “set an example”.
Hasan Convicted In 2009 Fort Hood Shooting
Hasan, a US-born citizen of Palestinian descent, was convicted of killing 13 people and wounding more than 30 others in a shooting at Fort Hood, Texas, in November 2009. At the time, he was an Army psychiatrist preparing to deploy to Afghanistan.
Hasan said he had targeted soldiers he was due to deploy with and wanted to protect the Taliban and its leaders from the US military. He was shot in the back by law enforcement during the attack, leaving him paralysed from the waist down.
Hegseth initially recommended that Hasan be executed by firing squad, a decision Trump approved. The planned execution would mark a rare use of the death penalty within the US military.
The debate over livestreaming the execution has added a separate question to the case: whether making the punishment public would serve as a deterrent, as Trump suggested, or create an opportunity for extremist propaganda. The final decision on the broadcast remains pending, according to CNN’s report.
