I don't know if you guys are hearing much about this. But it has a lot of people around here scratching their heads.
Quote:
Army psychiatrist Nidal Malik Hasan kills 13 in US base rampage
A Muslim army psychiatrist opposed to the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan opened fire on fellow soldiers at the world's largest military base yesterday, killing 13 people and wounding at least 30.
His family said that he had been due to be deployed to Iraq – a posting they described as "his worst nightmare".
At least two other men in uniform were initially suspected of involvement in the incident at Fort Hood in Texas, raising fears of a coordinated attack.
However, Lieutenant-General Bob Cone, the base commander, confirmed later that there was only one suspected gunman, identified last night as Major Nidal Malik Hasan, a doctor specializing in mental health.
Flags outside churches and cemeteries around the sprawling military base were at half-mast as its occupants tried to comprehend the slaughter in their midst.
Despite initial reports that Major Hasan had been killed during the shooting, Lieutenant-General Cone said that he was still alive and in hospital after undergoing surgery for his wounds.
"There was a single shooter that was shot multiple times at the scene," Lieutenant-General Cone said. "He was not killed as previously reported. He is currently in custody and in stable condition.
“He’s not currently speaking to investigators. I would say his death is not imminent.”
Asked if the shootings were a terrorist act, Lieutenant-General Cone said: “I couldn’t rule that out but ... the evidence does not suggest that.”
Major Hasan, 39, was shot four times by a female officer – who survived and is in hospital. Officials said the gunman was on a ventilator and unconscious.
He was found near a military police officer who had himself been shot and who later died of his wounds. The attack was said to have lasted only a few minutes.
Terry Lee, a retired colonel who worked with the gunman, said that Major Hasan had told him that he hoped President Obama would pull troops out of Afghanistan and Iraq and got into frequent arguments with others in the military who supported the wars.
Faizul Khan, a former imam at a mosque that Major Hasan attended in Silver Spring, Maryland, said he spoke often with him about how he wanted to find a wife. Major Hasan is a lifelong Muslim and attended prayers regularly, often in his army uniform, Mr Khan said.
The rampage, the worst ever to take place on a US military base, began at a "soldier readiness centre" used for final medical and dental check-ups for troops about to be sent overseas.
President Obama condemned what he called "a horrific outburst of violence" and said of its victims: "These are men and women who have made the selfless and courageous decision to risk and at times give their lives to protect the rest of us ... It's difficult enough when we lose these brave Americans in battles overseas. It is horrifying that they should come under fire at an army base on American soil."
Major Hasan, whose family said he was born in suburban Washington, is single with no children
“We are shocked and saddened by the terrible events at Fort Hood today,” his cousin, Nadar Hasan, said in a statement issued on behalf of their family. “We send the families of the victims our most heartfelt sympathies.”
The cousin said that Major Hasan had been ordered to serve a term in Iraq and had been resisting the deployment.
“We’ve known over the last five years that was probably his worst nightmare,” he said.
He had served as a psychiatrist at the Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Washington DC, which treats many badly wounded troops.
Major Hasan had transferred to Fort Hood in July after receiving a poor performance evaluation.
Military police surrounded a supermarket on the sprawling base soon after the initial attack had sent soldiers and civilians running for cover. There was confusion about the number of attackers, with reports suggesting that at least one other suspect might have been at large and armed with a high-powered sniper's rifle.
Major Hasan used two pistols, one of them semi-automatic, neither of them military issue. Soldiers at Fort Hood do not carry weapons unless they are doing training exercises.
Officials have not ruled out the possibility that some casualties may have been victims of friendly fire, shot in the confusion at the scene.
The wounded were dispersed among hospitals in central Texas. Lisa Pfund, whose daughter Amber Bahr, 19, was shot in the stomach, said: "We know nothing, just that she was shot in the belly."
She said that her daughter, who was in a stable condition, had joined the reserves at 17 and loved being in the military even though none of her friends was interested in joining the Army.
Set in hill country in central Texas, Fort Hood is home to more than 70,000 people – including soldiers' families – from the US 1st Cavalry Division and 4th Infantry Division. It has deployed more troops to American-led military operations in Iraq and Afghanistan than any other base.
Most combat troops at Fort Hood have served multiple tours in Iraq, Afghanistan or both since 2001.
The sound of gunfire erupted near the soldier readiness centre at 1.30pm, according to John Carter, a congressional representative for the area.
"I had a man on the scene, who is my regional director and former chaplain at Fort Hood, waiting to go to a graduation ceremony when a soldier came running up to him saying, 'Sir, don't go over there ... somebody is shooting over there'," Mr Carter told MSNBC.
"The soldier didn't know it, but he was wounded.
"He [the regional director] heard small arms and some rifle fire while he was there and said that he thought they had one person that they had caught but there may be more – he didn't know. He understood there was more than one. That was all he said."
The base, midway between Houston and Fort Worth, was closed and schools inside the perimeter were shut as a search started for any gunmen still at large. "Effective immediately. Fort Hood is closed," a message on the base website said. "Organizations/units are instructed to execute a 100 per cent accountability of all personnel. This is not a drill. It is an emergency situation."
News helicopters were kept out of the airspace over the base.
Fort Hood is the only army base in the US able to accommodate two full armored divisions. Described as a world unto itself, it has multiple schools, cinemas and suburbs as well as some of the country's most extensive firing ranges and training facilities.
That was the full story from the UK Times Online {link
here}
I have trained at Ft. Hood. This is shocking.
I hope the families affected by this may find peace.
