12 people killed, 31 wounded in Fort Hood shooting

A shooting incident last Thursday at Fort Hood military base in Texas left at least 12 people dead and 31 others wounded.

The suspect is Army Major Malik Nadal Hasan, believed to be in his late 30s, and an Army psychologist or psychiatrist at the base.  Officials are not sure if it is his birth name, or if he may have converted to Islam and changed his name.

The authorities are not sure yet of the motive for Hasan’ s violent outburst.

The base was locked down and the victims were brought to a nearby hospital.  Nine were taken to Scott & White Memorial Hospital in Temple.

A graduation ceremony was being held nearby when the shooting started.

In Washington, President Barack Obama issued a statement:  ”We will make sure that we get answers to every single question about this horrible incident.  We are going to stay on this.”

Fort Hood is the largest active-duty armored post in the U.S.  It officially opened on Sept. 18, 1942 in honor of General John Bell Hood.  It is home to 52,000 troops with bases located halfway between Austin and Waco.

[via yahoo news]