Fort Hood Tragedy: 13 Killed; 30 Wounded*
05 November 2009 6:16 pm by Taylor Marsh
LATE NIGHT UPDATE (11:24 pm): Reports that Hasan had died in the shooting were incorrect, with Hassan still alive and in stable condition. The AP is also reporting that over 6 months ago, Malik Nadal Hasan came under suspicion because of postings on the web:
At least six months ago, Hasan came to the attention of law enforcement officials because of Internet postings about suicide bombings and other threats, including posts that equated suicide bombers to soldiers who throw themselves on a grenade to save the lives of their comrades.
The sinking feeling I’ve got, and I’m sure I’m not alone, is that there is a tremendous possibility of a backlash against American Muslims, because of the actions of one very sick man. Reports across the wires say he was very upset about deployment to Iraq, considering it “his worst nightmare.”
Via Cilizza, the Washington Post has put together an aggregator of Twitter feeds that’s helpful for those following the story.
The LA Times, for those not familiar with base protocol on weapons:
Army officials said they did not know whether the handguns used in the assault were military-issued service weapons or personal weapons. The rules for carrying weapons on an Army post are standard throughout all bases, service officials said. The only personnel allowed to openly display weapons on the base are military police, Banks said. Service weapons are checked daily and are usually only allowed to be removed from an arms room for training on a range or maintenance. Personal weapons must be kept locked and registered with the base provost marshal. The military police keep a record of all of the weapons on a base, Army officials said.
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Via ABC News, with reader Joyce (who lives close to Fort Hood) commenting in the thread I uploaded earlier “In the News,” where you’ll also find the video of the initial Fort Hood briefing.
Twelve people have been killed and 31 wounded in a shooting spree at a Texas military base in a murderous rampage that officials believe was carried out by an Army officer. Gunman kills at least 7 and wounds 12 at Fort Hood. The suspected gunman was identified by ABC News as Major Malik Nadal Hasan.
Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchinson, R-Texas, told Fox News that military sources informed her that the gunman was about to be deployed to Iraq.
The shooter was killed and two other suspects, who are also soldiers, have been apprehended, Lt. Gen. Robert W. Cone said.
Already there is churning due to the soldier’s name who is the suspected gunman. Twitter abuzz on #tcot, but also with the trending topic of the major’s name. Everyone should take a very deep breath. It is, however, being reported by some military friends that Hasan was in the medical corp; with @CBSRadioNews reporting he’s a licensed psychiatrist.
Prayers go out to the extended Army family at Fort Hood.
UPDATE IV (7:43 pm): Finally, someone addressed the gun issue, because I’ve been wondering since this happened how “2 civilian handguns,” as it’s been described, could cause this carnage. Seriously, do the math. Rep. John Carter said that he’s now hearing that there might have also been a semi-automatic weapon involved.
UPDATE III: More info via an email from a friend: …Major Malik Nadal Hasan’s cousin on TV tonight, saying that he grew up in this country, was a Muslim, and since entering the military was “constantly harassed” for his Middle East heritage. Evidently, this pressure had him trying to get out of the military.
* UPDATE II: The headline above has been changed to 13 killed, as one of the 31 wounded has died. The earlier report that another wounded had died was mistaken by news sources and has been changed in the heading.
UPDATE: Reader Joyce just posted this “In the News”: “A local television station is saying that the shooter who was killed recently reported that “Allah” had been keyed onto his car. He reported it as a hate crime, and was, reportedly, very upset.”
