US plan to livestream execution of Nidal Malik Hasan elicits global condemnation

The Pentagon has confirmed plans to execute Nidal Malik Hasan, who was convicted of killing 13 people at Fort Hood in Texas in 2009, by firing squad on December 3. This execution is set to be broadcast live, prompting widespread condemnation from around the globe.

Critics have labeled the decision as "barbaric," drawing comparisons to authoritarian regimes in Iran and Afghanistan. The United Nations' office of the high commissioner for human rights warned that broadcasting the execution would constitute a public execution and violate the absolute prohibition of torture.

Former US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton expressed her disapproval on social media, stating, "A barbaric idea, beneath our dignity as a country. Push back on this." Similarly, Yassamin Ansari, the first Iranian American Democrat elected to Congress, criticized the move, saying, "In Trump’s America, we’re doing public executions now. WTF. This is what happens under brutal dictatorships."

Bridget Phillipson, the UK’s equalities minister, described the concept as "rather disturbing," emphasizing that while the US is a close ally, it does not mean the UK supports all US government actions.