US army appeals for help

2009-11-09 14:09

Fort Hood - US Army investigators looked for help on Monday as they tried to find an explanation why a US Army major opened fire at a military base in Fort Hood, Texas, killing 13 people and wounding 30.

"This has been a truly horrific last three days and every person has been touched in some way by this tragedy," said garrison chaplain Colonel Frank Jackson at one of the memorial services on Sunday.

"All those around us search for meaning, answers and for someone to blame and it's so frustrating," he said.

At the Comanche chapel, a largely African-American congregation sought refuge from the devastation at the Fort Hood base in Texas in gospel singing.

"Our focus today is on resiliency. The army is strong, we are focused on recovery," said chaplain Captain Jason Black.

Army investigators believe the suspected shooter, Major Nidal Hasan, 39, acted alone when he opened fire in a troops processing centre on Thursday.

"All evidence at this point indicates the suspect allegedly acted alone," said army investigation spokesperson, Chris Grey, appearing to rule out theories that Hasan was part of a radical Islamist sleeper-cell.

'An act of Islamist extremism'

But as US President Barack Obama prepared to attend a memorial on Tuesday, a US senator said he would launch a probe into whether the army missed any warning signs.

The chairperson of the Senate's Homeland Security committee, Joe Lieberman, said the deadly shooting at the Texas base was an act of "Islamist extremism", although it was too early to spell out the motives behind the attack.

"There are very, very strong warning signs here that Dr Hasan had become an Islamist extremist and, therefore, that this was a terrorist act," he told Fox News on Sunday.

"It's clear that he was, one, under personal stress and, two - if the reports that we're receiving of various statements he made, acts he took are valid - he had turned to Islamist extremism," he said.

"If that is true, the murder of these 13 people was a terrorist act."

The army's Criminal Investigation Command formally called for witnesses to come forward, asking for clothes or other personal effects that may contain gunshot residue to help put together a ballistic portrait of Thursday's events at building 42003.

From their work, and the testimony of those who met Hasan, a picture has emerged of a deeply religious American of Palestinian descent, who opposed his country's prosecution of wars in Afghanistan and Iraq.

Internet postings

Hasan was to be deployed to Afghanistan later this month, army officials said.

An initial search of Hasan's computer revealed no direct exchanges with known extremists, but US army and FBI officials had yet to rule out completely possible links to terrorist groups, US media reported.

Earlier this year, the Federal Bureau of Investigation learned of internet postings by a man calling himself Nidal Hasan that expressed support for suicide bombings.

Witnesses reportedly heard Hasan, who investigators believe fired more than 100 rounds during the incident, shout "Allahu Akbar!" (God is greatest) before opening fire.

The New York Times reported on Monday that on the day of the attack, Hasan attended 06:00 prayers at the brick mosque near Fort Hood.

Afterward, he said goodbye to his friends there and asked forgiveness from one man for any past offences, the paper said.

The major bought the gun used in the massacre last summer, days after arriving at Fort Hood, paying for it more than $1 100.

On Sunday, US commanders, fearing a backlash against Muslim troops - prized for their cultural and linguistic knowledge - warned against jumping to any conclusions.

Army chief of staff George Casey warned deadly shootings at Fort Hood could prompt a backlash against the estimated 3 500 Muslims serving in the US military.

"I worry that the speculation could cause something that we don't want to see happen," he said.

Sixteen of the 30 people wounded by volleys from the semi-automatic and the handgun allegedly wielded by Hasan, remained in hospital on Sunday as doctors warned many would be permanently scarred by their injuries.

The suspect himself, who was shot by a female civilian police officer who was being hailed as a heroine, was taken off a ventilator, but was still in intensive care.

- AFP