- Title: WEST BANK: Grandfather of U.S. army shooter shocked to hear of killings
- Date: 8th November 2009
- Summary: AL BIREH, NEAR RAMALLAH, WEST BANK (NOVEMBER 7, 2009) (REUTERS) EXTERIOR OF HOME OF RELATIVES OF MAJOR NIDAL MALIK HASAN WHO IS ACCUSED OF SHOOTING DEAD 13 PEOPLE IN A U.S. ARMY BASE IN TEXAS ISMAIL HAMAD, GRANDFATHER OF MAJOR NIDAL MALIK HASAN, WALKING (SOUNDBITE) (Arabic) GRANDFATHER OF MAJOR NIDAL MALIK HASAN, ISMAIL HAMAD SAYING "He used to come over to my house, to stay with me and entertain me. He never intervened in politics and he didn't even like watching television." ISMAIL TALKING (SOUNDBITE) (Arabic) GRANDFATHER OF MAJOR NIDAL MALIK HASAN, ISMAIL HAMAD SAYING "Whether he became angry or something else, I don't know anything about it. What I do know is that it is impossible that he would do something like that, because he is an upstanding and knowledgeable person. He is a doctor and loves America. And America made him what he is, and he serves it." ISMAIL GOING BACK TO HIS HOUSE
- Embargoed: 23rd November 2009 12:00
- Keywords:
- Topics: Crime / Law Enforcement,International Relations
- Reuters ID: LVADPTF7VHZ6RMMEGQ75Y4HFFKOG
- Story Text: The grandfather of a U.S. army psychiatrist says shooter, Major Nidal Malik Hasan, who shot dead 13 people at an army base in Texas, was a good person who was not capable of such a violent act.
The grandfather of Major Nidal Malik Hasan, a U.S. Army psychiatrist who is suspected of shooting dead 13 people in an army base in Texas, said on Saturday (November 7) that he was surprised to hear about his grandson's involvement in the deadly attack.
Ismail Hamad, the 88-year-old grandfather of Hasan, said that his grandson was not interested in politics.
"He used to come over to my house, to stay with me and entertain me. He never intervened in politics and he didn't even like watching television," Hamad told Reuters Television in his home near the West Bank city of Ramallah.
Hasan, a Muslim who was born in the United States to parents of Palestinian descent, was shot four times by police, a base spokesman said. He was unconscious but in stable condition.
Hamad added that Hasan loved and served the United States.
"Whether he became angry or something else, I don't know anything about it. What I do know is that it is impossible that he would do something like that, because he is an upstanding and knowledgeable person. He is a doctor and loves America. And America made him what he is, and he serves it," he said.
The gunman, with two guns including a semi-automatic weapon, opened fire apparently without warning at the crowded Soldiers Readiness Processing Center, where troops were getting medical check-ups before leaving for foreign deployments.
Hasan, 39, had spent years counselling severely wounded soldiers at the Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Washington, many of whom had lost limbs fighting in Iraq and Afghanistan.
He was transferred to Fort Hood in April and was to have been deployed to Afghanistan, where the U.S. military is engaged in an increasingly bloody war against Taliban and al Qaeda fighters. - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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