Outcry over US plans to livestream firing squad execution of Fort Hood shooter

To display this content from YouTube, you must enable advertisement tracking and audience measurement. One of your browser extensions seems to be blocking the video player from loading. To watch this content, you may need to disable it on this site. Cover image: © France 24 04:46 Issued on: 15/10/2026 - 14:33 US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth last week announced plans to livestream the firing squad execution of Fort Hood shooter Nidal Hasan, triggering a backlash among Republicans in Congress, religious leaders and international observers. The event would be extraordinary, even for a country that has long employed capital punishment. A government execution has never been broadcast or livestreamed, according to death penalty experts, and the US military ​has not executed anyone by firing squad since 1945. FRANCE 24's International Affairs Commentator Douglas Herbert tells us more.