US plans to publicly execute soldier; Australia urged to protest

Summarised from 2 outlets · Updated 11 Oct, 22:54 · Archive

The US plans to publicly execute former Army officer Nidal Hasan by firing squad on 3 December, potentially livestreaming it for the first time in US history.

The US War Secretary Pete Hegseth announced last week that Nidal Hasan, a former US Army officer who fatally shot 13 unarmed soldiers in 2009, would face execution by firing squad on 3 December. Hegseth said the execution would be public and livestreamed, stating that 'people need to understand that there's serious consequences for these types of things'. President Donald Trump backed the plan, which would be the first broadcast execution in US history.

Amnesty International Australia has called on the Albanese government to formally protest to the United States. Strategy and advocacy manager Kyinzom Dhongdue said the public execution was 'deeply disturbing' and that livestreaming it represented 'an appalling disregard for human dignity'. She urged Australian authorities to press the US to halt the execution, commute Hasan's death sentence and abandon plans to broadcast it.

Australia abolished capital punishment across all states and territories by 1985, and Parliament passed legislation permanently banning it in 2010. The Greens have similarly demanded that federal authorities stop the execution from being broadcast in Australia. Foreign Minister Penny Wong did not respond to requests for comment.

How it is being reported

• ‘Deeply disturbing’: Call for Australia to protest public US executionThe Albanese government is facing calls to protest a “deeply disturbing” execution in the US that could be livestreamed in Australia.The West Australian · 11 Oct, 22:44
• ‘Deeply disturbing’: Call for Australia to protest public US executionThe Albanese government is facing calls to protest a “deeply disturbing” execution in the US that could be livestreamed in Australia.Perth Now · 11 Oct, 22:44

In this story: Nidal Hasan · Pete Hegseth · Donald Trump · Penny Wong · Amnesty International Australia · United States · Australia

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