Military archbishop: Catholic soldiers should not take part in Hasan firing squad
Archbishop Broglio tells Catholics assigned to the firing squad for the Fort Hood gunman to ask to be excused. He asks: 'Do we really want to imitate the terrorists?'
Archive image · Photo: U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class Joshua T. Rodriguez / Wikimedia Commons, Public domain (cropped and resized)
Timothy Broglio, the Catholic archbishop for the US armed forces, has called on Catholic soldiers not to take part in the planned firing-squad execution of Fort Hood gunman Nidal Hasan. "I oblige any Catholics assigned to the firing squad to request to be excused from this action," Broglio said on Monday, hours after an audience with Pope Leo XIV. He criticised the planned livestream as a "public spectacle", asking: "Do we really want to imitate the terrorists of this world?" He also warned of "moral injury" to the shooters.
Hasan killed 13 people and wounded more than 30 at Fort Hood, Texas, in 2009; a court-martial sentenced him to death in 2013. Broglio himself presided at the funeral of the only civilian killed in the attack. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth wants the execution, set for 3 December, to be made public "because people need to understand that there's serious consequences for these types of things". President Donald Trump has approved the firing squad. Objections have also come from Republicans: Senator Lisa Murkowski said she would expect this "from terrorists and dictators", and Senator Kevin Cramer said the death penalty "is not entertainment".
The debate over the death penalty also continues in the states. Florida has scheduled another execution for noon local time on Tuesday, which would be the state's 17th this year. According to Floridians for Alternatives to the Death Penalty, the condemned man has waived challenges to his execution.