Trump said Thursday that Hasan will still be executed by firing squad as scheduled on December 3, but the public will not be allowed to watch it online, according to Donald Trump’s Truth Social post. US President Donald Trump has cancelled plans to livestream the execution of Fort Hood shooter Nidal Hasan to the public.
CNN reported earlier this week that Trump and his advisers were debating whether to cancel the livestream after the Pentagon announced the plan. However, he added that many well-meaning people would not want to watch Hasan die through a livestream or any other visual platform. Nidal Hasan was convicted of killing 13 people and injuring dozens of others in a shooting at Fort Hood, a US Army base in Texas, in 2009.
Trump said livestreaming the execution could have acted as a warning to others by showing how the US deals with terrorists. He did not say that the cancellation of the livestream would change the planned execution date or method, according to CNN.
The Pentagon’s plan to livestream the execution faced opposition from both Republicans and Democrats . The announcement also caught people across the Pentagon and the US Army off guard. A poll released on Thursday by ABC News, The Washington Post and Ipsos found that 80% of US adults opposed livestreaming Hasan’s execution. The opposition also included 64% of Republicans surveyed.
