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An Army psychiatrist who was about to be deployed to Iraq allegedly armed himself with two guns and opened fire Thursday afternoon on the grounds of Ft. Hood, the country's largest military base, killing 12 people and injuring 31 others.
Officials said that soldiers and civilians ripped apart their clothes to make bandages for fallen colleagues, many of whom were waiting at the base's Soldier Readiness Center for medical and dental exams before deployment. The attack shocked the country and raised questions about base security.
The suspected gunman, who initially was thought to have died, was wounded and in stable condition under guard at a hospital. Identified as Maj. Nidal Malik Hasan, 39, he worked at the Darnall Army Medical Center, Ft. Hood's hospital. The facility has an extensive program to help soldiers deal with the stress of returning from war.
Base commander Lt. Gen. Robert Cone said at a news conference Thursday evening that Hasan was shot multiple times by a female civilian Army police officer, who was also injured. The suspect reportedly had not spoken with investigators, and Cone would not say anything more about him.
A senior U.S counter-terrorism official said Thursday night that the Army and FBI were looking into whether Hasan, who is Muslim, had previously come to the attention of federal law enforcement officials as the suspected author of inflammatory Internet comments likening suicide bombers to heroic soldiers who give their lives to save others.
The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity because the investigation was ongoing, said that authorities would examine Hasan's actions in the months leading up to the rampage in part to determine whether authorities had missed warning signs. "This is going to be a long and convoluted and messy investigation," the official said.
Although three other soldiers were briefly taken into custody, Cone said he believed that the gunman acted alone.
President Obama lamented the attack as a "horrific outburst of violence" and promised justice. "We are going to stay on this," he said.
"These are men and women who have made the selfless decision" to protect the nation, Obama said of the victims. "It is horrifying that they should come under fire at an Army base on American soil."
Hasan, a Virginia native,...