Nidal Hasan Firing Squad: Why Trump Approved Execution

President Donald Trump approved the execution of Nidal Hasan by firing squad on 5 October 2026 after Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth recommended that the military death sentence be carried out. Hasan was convicted by court-martial of killing 13 people in the 2009 Fort Hood shooting and sentenced to death in August 2013; if the execution proceeds, it would be the first U.S. military execution since 1961.

As of 6 October 2026, no execution date had been announced. The presidential approval completed a step required by military law, but the Army secretary still had to set the time and place, and Hasan could pursue remaining legal challenges.

Why did the president have to approve the execution?

A military death sentence does not operate like an ordinary federal civilian death sentence. Under the Uniform Code of Military Justice, the president must approve the sentence before it can be carried out. The 5 October approval (opens in a new tab) therefore used a power specifically reserved to the president after the court-martial and appellate process.

That does not mean Trump convicted Hasan. Hasan was convicted in 2013 by a military court after representing himself with standby counsel and was sentenced to death for the Fort Hood killings. Trump's act came years later at the execution stage.

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth recommended carrying out the sentence, and Donald Trump approved it. The division of responsibility matters: the court-martial determined guilt and punishment; the executive branch decided whether to authorize implementation.

Why a firing squad, and what changed in 2026?

Pentagon spokesman Sean Parnell said on 5 October that an Army firing squad would carry out the sentence. In April 2026 the Justice Department had re-adopted firing squads, electrocution and lethal gas for federal civilian executions; the Pentagon has not published the military rule it is relying on. That made firing squad available as an execution method for military death sentences.

Trump's approval did not itself specify a public execution date. The Army secretary is responsible for fixing the time and place. The case therefore moved from a dormant death sentence toward possible implementation without reaching the final logistical stage on 5 October.

The choice also raises a broader executive-power (opens in a new tab) question because military capital punishment ultimately requires a presidential decision even after courts have completed the conviction process. That institutional structure is separate from whether one supports or opposes Hasan's sentence.

When was the last U.S. military execution?

The last military execution was in 1961, when Army Private John A. Bennett was hanged after President Dwight Eisenhower approved his death sentence. No U.S. service member has been executed by the military since then.

That 65-year gap is why Hasan's case would be historically significant if carried out. It would not be the first military death sentence since 1961, but it would be the first completed military execution in that period.

Death-penalty opponents have criticized the planned execution on broader grounds, arguing that the government should not restart military executions after decades without one. Victims' relatives have expressed different views over the years, including support for seeing the sentence carried out. Those positions are moral and policy judgments; the settled legal fact is that Hasan was convicted and sentenced by court-martial.

Can Hasan still challenge the execution?

Yes. Presidential approval does not eliminate all avenues for litigation. Hasan can seek judicial review of execution procedures or raise claims that remain legally available. Courts would determine whether any challenge is sufficient to delay implementation.

The rule-of-law issue is therefore procedural rather than a dispute over whether Hasan was convicted. The relevant rule-of-law standard is whether the government follows the military justice system's required approvals, notice and review before carrying out an irreversible sentence.

The decision also comes while Hegseth faces a separate political fight over impeachment articles filed in September (opens in a new tab). That controversy does not change Hasan's conviction or sentence, but it is part of the accountability context around the defense secretary who recommended the execution.

Background: Is Pete Hegseth being impeached? (opens in a new tab)

Questions people ask

Why did Trump approve a firing squad for Nidal Hasan?

Military law requires presidential approval before a court-martial death sentence can be carried out, and Trump approved Hasan's execution after Pete Hegseth recommended it.

When was the last US military execution?

The last U.S. military execution was in 1961, when Army Private John A. Bennett was hanged.

When will Nidal Hasan be executed?

No execution date was announced on 5 October 2026. The Army secretary must set the time and place, and legal challenges can still occur.