The Pentagon has announced plans to execute Nidal Malik Hasan, a former US Army major, by firing squad following approval from Secretary of War Pete Hegseth and President Donald Trump. The action marks the first military execution by this method in more than 60 years, since the conclusion of World War Two. Hasan was convicted for a shooting at Fort Hood in 2009 that resulted in 13 deaths and 32 injuries among unarmed US soldiers.
Hasan, a psychiatrist from Virginia, carried out the attack in a crowded medical facility where deploying soldiers were receiving medical evaluations and vaccinations. During his 2013 court-martial, he acknowledged being the gunman and stated he believed his actions protected Muslims and the Taliban in Afghanistan. The incident remains the deadliest non-combat attack on an American military installation. According to the Pentagon, the secretary of the Army will determine the execution’s timing and location.
Military executions require presidential approval under US military law and must undergo appellate review and legal assessment before proceeding. Hasan is currently one of four inmates on the US military’s death row. The military death penalty was deemed unconstitutional by the US Court of Appeals for the Armed Forces in 1983 but was reinstated through executive order under then-President Ronald Reagan.
Firing squad executions remain relatively rare in the US. South Carolina conducted such an execution last year, marking the first in that state and the first nationwide use of the method in 15 years. Four other states—Idaho, Mississippi, Oklahoma, and Utah—permit firing squad as an execution method. President Trump reinstated the federal death penalty through executive order in January 2025, characterizing capital punishment as essential for deterring serious crimes. His predecessor, former President Joe Biden, had implemented a moratorium on federal executions.
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