Shootings At Ft. Hood

[Titan]

http://www.cnn.com/2009/US/11/05/tex...ngs/index.html

"(CNN) -- At least seven people are dead and between 12 and 15 wounded in shootings at Fort Hood in Texas on Thursday, senior Pentagon official told CNN.

At least one person is "neutralized" in connection with the incident, and a second is "cornered," retired Army Lt. Gen. Russel Honore told CNN, citing "unofficial, unconfirmed reports" from two sources.

On the Fort Hood Web site, the word "closed" is posted with the statement, "Effective immediately, Fort Hood is closed. Organizations/units are instructed to execute a 100 percent accountability of all personnel."

Fort Hood was asking people on post to stay away from windows, CNN affiliate KXXV said. The incident took place at the sports dome, now known as the soldier readiness area, the station reported.

FBI agents are headed to the scene to assist, said Erik Vasys, spokesman for the FBI office in San Antonio. He had no other details.

The military installation is located near Killeen, Texas. It is the Army's largest installation, Honore said.

Fort Hood, 50 miles north of Austin, Texas, is the largest base in the United States and home to the 4th Infantry Division."

Lets send our prayers out to the families of those who have died today.

[Yankee316]

R.I.P to those individuals who were lost

May all those resposible for this attack recieve an unpleasant end to there pathetic lives.

[UrbanMarine]

I know it's ****ing crazy. I'm trying to get a hold of people I know out there.

[Titan]

Originally Posted by UrbanMarine

I know it's ****ing crazy. I'm trying to get a hold of people I know out there.

I am waiting for all the details. This iss really something that you would not expect on a military base!

[NegSpace]

Originally Posted by Titan

I am waiting for all the details. This iss really something that you would not expect on a military base!

You are right, which unfortunately probably contributed to it all. Very sad and disappointing.

[Son of Liberty]

Do we know the party responsible for the shootings?

[Yankee316]

There soldiers.

[alex]

Has it been confirmed they were soldiers or imposters wearing solidiers uniforms?

[Evil Head]

The shooter killed was a Major. MAJ. Malik Nadal Hasan. The other two suspects are being interviewed by FBI. We might want to wait until the rest of the investigation is completed.

[skywalker]

Latest update I've heard is 12 dead including one shooter and 31 wounded. Obviously there is no money to be gained in this so its either an act of terrorism or somehow these three men thought it was a good idea to shoot up a pre-deployment center. And from the name of the Major, it sounds like it is an act of terrorism. I'm not a racist and I don't think all muslims are terrorist, but obviously the name of the Maj. involved is going to start some speculation and rumors.

I am interested to hear more information and I'm sure we'll know more within the next 48 hours.


RIP to the fallen soldiers.

I pray the wounded make a full recovery.

Prayers to all of their families.

[Titan]

UPDATE this is the latest from CNN

"(CNN) -- Eleven people plus a gunman were dead and 31 wounded after the gunman opened fire Thursday on a soldier-processing center at Fort Hood, Texas, officials said.

The gunman was a soldier, and two other soldiers have been detained as suspects, Army Lt. Gen. Bob Cone said.

The slain gunman was identified as Maj. Malik Nadal Hasan, according to a law enforcement source. The source believes he is 39 or 40 years old.

Ten of the other dead also were soldiers, while the remaining one was a civilian police officer who was working as a contractor on the base, Cone said.

Two of the injured were in "very serious" condition, Fort Hood spokesman Christopher Hogue said.

Watch developments live

More than one shooter may have been involved, Cone said.

"All the casualties took place at the initial incident, that took place at 13:30 [1:30 p.m. CT], at the soldier readiness facility," Cone said.

The primary shooter had two weapons, both handguns, he said.

"The local police response forces were there relatively quickly and killed the confirmed shooter," Cone said.

Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison, R-Texas, said she was told that the soldiers at the readiness facility "were filling out paper processing to go to Iraq or Afghanistan," according to CNN affiliate KXAN in Austin, Texas.

iReport.com: Are you there? Send pics, video

President Obama called the shootings "tragic" and "a horrific outburst of violence." He expressed his condolences for the shooting victims.

"These are men and women who have made the selfless and courageous decision to risk, and at times give, their lives to protect the rest of us on a daily basis," Obama said. "It's difficult enough when we lose these brave Americans in battles overseas. It is horrifying that they should come under fire at an Army base on American soil."

Officials at Fort Hood, which is the Army's largest U.S. post, were asking people there to stay away from windows, CNN affiliate KXXV said. The incident took place at the sports dome, now known as the soldier readiness area, the station reported.

A congressional aide said he was on the post to attend a graduation service when he saw a soldier with blood on his uniform near the building where the service was being held, the Austin American-Statesman reported.

Greg Schannep, an aide to U.S. Rep. John Carter, said the soldier ran past him and said a man was shooting. He said the soldier appeared to be injured in a shoulder, the American-Statesman reported.

The Army has asked the FBI to look into the background of the suspects, Cone said.

On the Fort Hood Web site, the word "closed" is posted with the statement, "Effective immediately, Fort Hood is closed. Organizations/units are instructed to execute a 100 percent accountability of all personnel."

Fort Hood, with about 40,000 troops, is home to the Army's 1st Cavalry Division and elements of the 4th Infantry Division, as well as the 3rd Armored Cavalry Regiment and the 13th Corps Support Command. It is located near Killeen, Texas.

At least 25,000 people are at Fort Hood on any given day, an Army spokesman at the Pentagon said.

Fort Hood is home to the Warrior Combat Stress Reset Program, which is designed to help soldiers overcome combat stress issues.

In June, Fort Hood's commander, Lt. Gen. Rick Lynch, told CNN that he was trying to ease the kind of stresses soldiers face. He has pushed for soldiers working a day schedule to return home for dinner by 6 p.m., and required his personal authorization for anyone working weekends. At the time, two soldiers stationed there had committed suicide in 2009 -- a rate well below those of other posts."

[Evil Head]

Skywalker, there's no evidence that it's an act of terrorism. I'd wait to see what the investigation yeilds.

[Dace]

Common definitions of terrorism refer only to those violent acts which are intended to create fear (terror), are perpetrated for an ideological goal (as opposed to a lone attack), and deliberately target or disregard the safety of non-combatants.

-from wikipedia
Sounds like terrorism to me. At the same time it doesnt you decide

[Spectre]

A moment of silence was held for those in the chat to remember the individuals who lost their lives today in this incident. For all of them, the soldiers, the officer, and the gunman.

Please remember one of the founding principles of this nation, innocent until proven guilty.

[strikers_blade]

are you guys done with the assumptions?
We don't even know how many shooters were involved. The only thing you know is Fort Hood deals with soldiers coming back with combat stress or however they call it. Maybe the guy just snapped, maybe more than one were crazy and snapped all together, I don't know, you don't know, the authorties don't know. Now lets just wait and see....stop with the terrorism panic button...

[bishopMP]

im leaving for Ft. Hood in the morning...im sure everyone will know everything by the time i get back.

[Firefox]

Originally Posted by UrbanMarine

I know it's ****ing crazy. I'm trying to get a hold of people I know out there.

You and me both, my cousin is stationed there at the moment. The RUMOR I have heard is that calls do not work but txt messages supposedly do. Yet I still have not heard anything from my cousin.

[RNA]

from what i ve heard from the news theres 12 dead and 31 injured and a military mental health doctor who was going over seas is the one who started the shooting .... its all in the link im providing

http://www.wcpo.com/news/local/story...xIIWfGvsg.cspx

[Titan]

A civilian officer who was wounded in the incident shot the suspect, who is "in custody and in stable condition," Cone told reporters.

It was also said soldiers are not allowed to talk to the media regarding this event

[NegSpace]

Originally Posted by Da dace 43

-from wikipedia
Sounds like terrorism to me. At the same time it doesnt you decide

Ignorant insinuations and assumptions will cause more damage as per your wikipedia definition than any shooting will. There is a due process, and let it happen. The more people jump to wild conclusions, the less we can properly assess the given situation and honor the memory of those who were killed.

[Dutton]

Latest updates show that the gunman was shot 4 times and is in stable condition in an undisclosed hospital in TX, along with security.

Hopefully this will bring some answers sooner...

[mac50]

Technically it DOES fit the FBI definition of terrorism. It doesn't have to be a group organized effort. Timothy McVeigh and that guy that shot up CSU a couple of years ago fall under the definition of terrorist acts.

[UrbanMarine]

Oh how terrorism has been redefined since 9/11

[NegSpace]

Originally Posted by mac50

Technically it DOES fit the FBI definition of terrorism. It doesn't have to be a group organized effort. Timothy McVeigh and that guy that shot up CSU a couple of years ago fall under the definition of terrorist acts.

Then by definition, any public act of violence is terrorism. But immediately labeling it as such will do one of two things: 1) incite further panic, further allowing terror to creep into the public mentality (and allowing it to succeed), or 2) give complacency to acts of terror that are truly intended to be as such, as opposed to what may be in this case of an overworked, untreated mental health professional who cracked due to the inability of the system to treat HIM after he helps traumatized soldiers (I'd say THAT assumption is safer than the ridiculous sentiments I've read that, "our armed forces have been infiltrated by the enemy" crap...).

Seriously, we didn't even KNOW what was going on in Oklahoma until after the investigation. Let the facts come out as they come out.

[UrbanMarine]

This is how they teach it in poly sci.

Terrorism- "The unlawful use or threatened use of force or violence by a person or an organized group against people or property with the intention of intimidating or coercing societies or governments, often for ideological or political reasons."