US Vice President JD Vance has expressed doubts over whether a controversial Pentagon plan to publicly livestream the execution of Fort Hood gunman Nidal Hasan will proceed, as global condemnation grows over Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth’s proposal.
Speaking to reporters on Friday during a campaign stop in Ohio, Vance distanced himself from the proposal, stating that he would not watch the broadcast if it takes place. While Vance emphasised that Hasan committed a horrific attack when he killed 13 people and wounded more than 30 others at the Texas military base in 2009, he cast doubt on whether the public livestream would ultimately be carried out.
The growing backlash came as the United Nations Human Rights Office warned that broadcasting the 3 December firing squad would violate international standards against degrading punishment and could constitute psychological torture.
Amnesty International and human rights groups also cautioned that turning a military execution into a public spectacle compounds the cruelty of capital punishment.
Domestic political criticism has mounted across the political spectrum.
Republican Senator Thom Tillis of North Carolina called the plan “beyond disgusting”, comparing public executions to practices used by oppressive dictatorships in Iran and Afghanistan.
Democratic lawmakers and religious leaders, including the US Conference of Catholic Bishops, have similarly urged the Pentagon to abandon the proposal.
US President Donald Trump confirmed at a White House event that Hasan will face execution by firing squad, calling him a “maniac” who deserves the death penalty.
However, Trump did not comment on whether he supports Hegseth’s plan to broadcast the execution live to the public.
Hasan, a Palestinian-American former Army psychiatrist, is set to become the first person executed by a US military firing squad since 1945.
