President Donald Trump has made a dramatic reversal, announcing that the planned firing squad execution of convicted Fort Hood mass shooter Nidal Malik Hasan will no longer be broadcast live to the public.
The announcement on Thursday, October 15, 2026, follows intense criticism of the Pentagon’s controversial proposal to livestream the execution, scheduled for December 3, 2026.
Hasan, a former U.S. Army major and psychiatrist, was sentenced to death for the November 5, 2009, shooting rampage at Fort Hood military base in Texas that killed 13 people and wounded more than 30 others.
Despite cancelling the livestream, Trump confirmed that the execution itself would proceed as scheduled.
The original broadcasting proposal, introduced by Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, had sparked widespread condemnation from politicians, religious leaders, human rights advocates and members of the public.
Hegseth initially defended the unprecedented move, arguing that allowing the world to witness the execution could send a powerful warning to potential terrorists.
Trump also initially entertained the idea, suggesting that publicly showing the punishment might discourage similar attacks in the future.
However, growing opposition from both Republicans and Democrats prompted the president to reconsider.
In announcing his decision, Trump acknowledged that many Americans were uncomfortable with witnessing a person being executed, regardless of the severity of the crime.
The decision represents a significant reversal for the administration, particularly after the Pentagon publicly indicated that the execution would be accessible to viewers around the world.
Vice President JD Vance and several prominent Republican figures were among those who expressed concerns about turning the execution into a public spectacle.
Critics argued that broadcasting the death of a convicted mass murderer could undermine American values and potentially provide extremist organisations with propaganda material.
Under the revised arrangement, immediate family members of the Fort Hood victims will still have the opportunity to witness the execution in person if they choose.
Hasan, who was left paralysed from the waist down following the 2009 attack, remains on military death row.
His scheduled execution would mark the first execution carried out by the United States military since 1961, although legal challenges could still affect the December 3 date.
The controversy has reignited a national debate over capital punishment, public executions and the limits of government transparency.
While Trump has cancelled the livestream, the decision does not alter Hasan’s death sentence, leaving the convicted Fort Hood shooter facing a scheduled firing squad execution in December.
