US President Donald Trump has cast uncertainty over plans to livestream the execution of a former Army psychiatrist convicted of killing 13 people at Fort Hood, Texas, in 2009, amid mounting criticism of the proposed broadcast.
Trump said on Friday that a decision was still being considered on whether the execution of Nidal Hasan would be broadcast live, despite earlier assurances from the Pentagon that the public would be able to watch it.
“They are making a determination about that, but he will be killed,” Trump said, adding that he did not care how the execution was carried out, provided it happened.
Hasan, who was convicted of the deadly shooting at the US military base, is scheduled to be executed by firing squad on 3 December at Fort Hood, where the attack took place.
If carried out as planned, the execution would mark the first by a US military firing squad since 1945.
The Pentagon’s announcement that the execution would be livestreamed has triggered widespread condemnation, with critics questioning the ethics of publicly broadcasting a state-sanctioned killing.
US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth had earlier defended the plan, saying the public should be able to witness the consequences of such crimes.
However, Trump’s latest remarks have raised questions about whether the proposed broadcast will go ahead.
Vance questions livestream plan
US Vice-President JD Vance has also expressed uncertainty over the proposed livestream, saying he was not convinced it would happen.
Speaking to journalists on Friday, Vance described Hasan’s attack as one of the gravest terrorist incidents on American soil outside the September 11 attacks.
However, he said he would not watch the execution if it were broadcast live.
The proposal has also drawn criticism from members of Trump’s Republican Party, as well as Democratic lawmakers.
Republican Representative Austin Scott said he supported Hasan’s execution but questioned the decision to broadcast it publicly, arguing that America should not adopt practices associated with extremist groups.
Democratic Senator Mark Kelly similarly said Hasan should face justice but warned against publicly televising an execution.
The criticism highlights growing divisions over whether broadcasting the death of a convicted mass killer would serve any legitimate public purpose.
UN condemns proposed broadcast
The United Nations has also criticised the plan.
The UN High Commissioner for Human Rights warned that livestreaming an execution would amount to a public execution and breach the absolute prohibition of torture.
Archbishop Paul Coakley, president of the US Conference of Catholic Bishops, described the proposal as a “barbaric promotion of a culture of death” and called for it to be reconsidered.
The controversy comes amid renewed debate in the United States over capital punishment and the methods used to carry out death sentences.
Hasan, a former Army psychiatrist, was sentenced to death in 2013 after being convicted of 45 counts of premeditated murder and attempted premeditated murder following the 2009 shooting.
The attack, which left 13 people dead, remains one of the deadliest shootings at a US military installation.
Although Trump has endorsed the death penalty for Hasan, his latest comments have left the proposed livestream in doubt.
The White House and Pentagon now face mounting scrutiny over whether the unprecedented broadcast will proceed as planned.
