Donald Trump calls off planned live stream of firing squad execution
Posted , updated
US President Donald Trump has scrapped plans to live stream the execution of a man by military firing squad. (Reuters: Eric Lee)
In short:
Donald Trump says the Pentagon's plans to live stream a firing squad execution will not go ahead.
Nidal Hasan is set to be executed on December 3 for a deadly mass shooting in 2009 that killed 13 soldiers.
Plans to live stream the execution prompted outrage in the US and beyond, including in Australia.
US President Donald Trump says the execution of former US army psychiatrist Nidal Hasan by firing squad will not be live streamed.
The decision came after intense backlash to the announcement that the execution would be shown online.
Hasan killed 13 US army soldiers and injured another 32 during a shooting at a Texas military base in 2009.
Australian politicians were among those critical of the decision, with Prime Minister Anthony Albanese flagging that the federal government was exploring ways to prevent the stream being shown in Australia.
The execution of former US army psychiatrist Nidal Hasan will no longer be live streamed, US President Donald Trump has said. (AFP: Bell Country Sherriff's Department)
Mr Trump had previously indicated he approved of the live stream, but acknowledged on Thursday, local time, that "many very good and well meaning people would rather not watch him die".
In a social media post, Mr Trump said publicly airing the execution "might have been a strong deterrent for the World to witness how America deals with Terrorists and SCUM like Hasan".
Plans sparked domestic backlash
Hasan's execution is scheduled for December 3, according to the Pentagon.
Mr Trump said the execution could still be viewed in person by immediate families of the victims, "if they so choose".
US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth's announcement earlier this month that the execution would be live streamed prompted significant blowback within the US from both Republicans and Democrats.
Concerns were raised that the images could be used to fuel radicalisation.
Among those saying they would not watch the execution was Vice-President JD Vance.
“So whatever the controversy is about the method of the execution, I hope that people don’t forget that this is a guy who brutally murdered a lot of innocent people,” Mr Vance said.
Push to stop stream in Australia
In Australia, Mr Albanese said social media platforms had a moral duty to block the stream.
"I think anybody broadcasting this will damage their own reputations as well. They have a social responsibility here to do the right thing," he told the ABC's Afternoon Briefing on Tuesday.
The eSafety Commissioner, however, said the government could not prevent platforms from showing the footage.
Politicians from the Liberal Party, the Greens and One Nation all expressed opposition to the execution being live streamed online.
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