UPDATED: AP Sources Say Authorities Had Concerns About Fort Hood Shooting Suspect

***9:00 p.m. Update November 5***

AP sources Say Authorities Had Concerns About Fort Hood Shooting Suspect

Washington, D.C. – Federal law enforcement officials say the suspected Fort Hood, Texas, shooter had come to their attention at least six months ago because of Internet postings that discussed suicide bombings and other threats.

The officials say the postings appeared to have been made by Maj. Nidal Malik Hasan, who was killed during the shooting incident that left least 11 others dead and 31 wounded. The officials say they are still trying to confirm that he was the author. They say an official investigation was not opened.

The officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss the case.

One of the Web postings that authorities reviewed is a blog that equates suicide bombers with a soldier throwing himself on a grenade to save the lives of his comrades.

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***8:35 p.m. Update November 5***

Military Doctor Kills 11 In Fort Hood Rampage

FORT HOOD, Texas (AP/Fox News) – A military mental health doctor facing deployment overseas opened fire at the Fort Hood Army post on Thursday, setting off on a rampage that killed 11 other people and left 31 wounded. Authorities killed the gunman, and the violence was believed to be the worst mass shooting in history at a U.S. military base.

The shooting began around 1:30 p.m., when shots were fired at the base’s Soldier Readiness Center, where soldiers who are about to be deployed or who are returning undergo medical screening, said Lt. Gen. Bob Cone at Fort Hood.

President Barack Obama called the shooting “a horrific outburst of violence.“ He said it is a tragedy to lose a soldier overseas and even more horrifying when they come under fire at an Army base on American soil.

“We will make sure that we get answers to every single question about this horrible incident,“ the commander in chief said in Washington. “We are going to stay on this.“

A law enforcement official identified the shooting suspect as Army Maj. Nidal Malik Hasan. The official spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to discuss the case publicly.

It was unclear what the motive was, though it appeared he was upset about a scheduled deployment. U.S. Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison said the Army major was about to deploy overseas, though it was unclear if he was headed to Iraq or Afghanistan and when he was scheduled to leave. Hutchison said she was told about the upcoming deployment by generals based at Fort Hood.

Retired Army Col. Terry Lee told Fox News that he worked with Hasan, who had hoped Obama would pull troops out of Afghanistan and Iraq. Lee said Hasan got into frequent arguments with others in the military who supported the wars, and had tried hard to prevent his pending deployment.

Military officials say Hasan, 39, was a psychiatrist at Walter Reed Army Medical Center for six years before being transferred to the Texas base in July. The officials, who had access to Hasan’s military record, said he received a poor performance evaluation while at Walter Reed. The officials spoke on condition of anonymity because military records are confidential.

The Virginia-born soldier was single with no children. He graduated from Virginia Tech, where he was a member of the ROTC and earned a bachelor’s degree in biochemistry in 1997. He received his medical degree from the military’s Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences in Bethesda, Md., in 2001. At Walter Reed, he did his internship, residency and a fellowship.

Officials were investigating whether Hasan was his birth name or if he may have changed his name, possibly as part of a conversion to Islam. However, they were not certain of his religion.

The Soldier Readiness Center holds hundreds of people and is one of the most populated parts of the base, said Steve Moore, a spokesman for III Corps at Fort Hood. Nearby there are barracks and a food center where there are fast food chains. The center is part of the largest active duty armored post in the United States. Covering 339 square miles, the post halfway between Austin and Waco was home to about 52,000 troops as of earlier this year.

A graduation ceremony for soldiers who finished college courses while deployed was going on nearby at the time of the shooting, said Sgt. Rebekah Lampman, a Fort Hood spokeswoman.

Greg Schanepp, Carter’s regional director in Texas, was at Fort Hood, said John Stone, a spokesman for U.S. Rep. John Carter, whose district includes the Army post. Schanepp was at a graduation ceremony when a soldier who had been shot in the back came running toward him and alerted him of the shooting, Stone said. The soldier told Schanepp not to go in the direction of the shooter, he said.

Soldiers don’t carry weapons with them unless they’re doing training exercises, said Spc. Jerry Richard, 27, who works at the building where the shooting happened — though he was not on post at the time.

“Overseas you are ready for it. But here you can’t even defend yourself,“ he said.

Two other soldiers taken into custody following the deadly rampage have been released, Fort Hood spokesman Christopher Haug said. “They’re not believed to be involved in the incident,“ Haug said. He said a third person was in custody, however.

The wounded were dispersed among hospitals in central Texas, Cone said.

Lisa Pfund of Random Lake, Wis., says her daughter, 19-year-old Amber Bahr, was shot in the stomach but was in stable condition. “We know nothing, just that she was shot in the belly,“ Pfund told The Associated Press. She couldn’t provide more details and only spoke with emergency personnel.

Pfund said Bahr joined the reserves when she was 17 to earn money for school and loved being in the military even though none of her friends were interested in joining the Army.

A Fort Hood spokesman said he could not immediately confirm any identities of the injured.

“I ask that all of you keep these families and these individuals in your prayers today,“ Texas Gov. Rick Perry said.

The shootings on the Texas military base stirred memories of other recent mass shootings in the United States, including 13 dead at a New York immigrant center in April, 10 killed during a gunman’s rampage across Alabama in March and 32 killed in the deadliest mass shooting in modern U.S. history at Virginia Tech in 2007.

Around the country, some bases stepped up security precautions, but no others were locked down.

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***7:30 p.m. Update November 5***

Cousin Says Fort Hood Gunman Feared Impending War Deployment

Fort Hood, TX (Fox News)—The man who sources have identified as the shooter behind a deadly rampage Thursday at Fort Hood was a military psychiatrist whose had turned against the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan but was about to be sent overseas, his cousin told Fox News.

Army Maj. Nidal Malik Hasan, 39, wanted to be released from the military before he was set to be deployed overseas, and he even had hired a military lawyer to assist his efforts, according to the cousin, Nader Hasan.

His family was in shock Thursday night, Nader Hasan told Fox News.

“We are trying to make sense of all this,“ he said. “He wasn’t even someone who enjoyed going to the firing range.“

Maj. Hasan was working with soldiers at Darnall Army Medical Center on Fort Hood after being transferred in July from Walter Reed Army Medical Center, where he had worked for six years before getting a bad review.

Hasan, who was born and raised in Virginia and graduated from Virginia Tech University, turned against the wars after hearing the stories of those who came back from Afghanistan and Iraq, Nader Hasan said. Maj. Hasan, raised a Muslim, had wanted to go into the military against his parent’s wishes, but he was taunted by others after the terror attacks of Sept. 11, his cousin said.

A former Fort Hood colleague of the shooter said Hasan would frequently make “outlandish” comments.

“He said maybe Muslims should stand up and fight against the aggressor,“ retired Col. Terry Lee told Fox News. “At first we thought he meant help the armed forces, but apparently that wasn’t the case. Other times he would make comments we shouldn’t be in the war in the first place.“

Hasan had been optimistic that President Obama would start pulling troops out of Iraq and Afghanistan, Lee said, but when that didn’t happen as quickly as he hoped, Hasan became angry.

“He was sort of a loner and kept to himself,“ Lee told Fox News. “He didn’t socialize a lot with officers off duty or on duty.“

At Virginia Tech University, Hasan he was a member of the ROTC and earned a bachelor’s degree in biochemistry in 1997.

He received his medical degree from the military’s Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences in Bethesda, Md., in 2001.

At Walter Reed, he did his internship, residency and a fellowship.

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***7:05 p.m. Update November 5***

AP Source: Suspected Fort Hood Shooter Got Poor Evaluation

WASHINGTON (AP) - Military officials say the suspected shooter t Fort Hood was a psychiatrist at Walter Reed Army Medical Center for six years before being transferred to the Texas base in July.

The officials had access to Maj. Nidal Malik Hasan’s military record. They said he received a poor performance evaluation while at Walter Reed.

The officials spoke on condition of anonymity because military records are confidential.

The Virginia-born soldier was single with no children. He was 39 years old.

He is a graduate of Virginia Tech University, where he was a member of the ROTC and earned a bachelor’s degree in biochemistry in 1997. He received his medical degree from the military’s Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences in Bethesda, Md., in 2001. At Walter Reed, he did his internship, residency and a fellowship.

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***5:35 p.m. Update November 5***

President Obama Laments ‘Horrific Outburst Of Violence’

WASHINGTON (AP) - President Barack Obama is calling a mass shooting at Fort Hood a “horrific outburst of violence.“

He says he doesn’t yet know all the details but promised the government would get “answers to every single question.“

The commander in chief says it’s a tragedy to lose a soldier overseas and even more horrifying when they come under fire at an Army base on American soil.

Obama also said his thoughts and prayers are with the wounded and families of the fallen.

The U.S. Army says 12 people have been killed and 31 wounded in a shooting rampage on the Fort Hood Army base in Texas.

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***5:30 p.m. Update November 5***

Army: 12 Dead In Attacks At Fort Hood, Texas

FORT HOOD, Texas (AP) - The U.S. Army says 12 people have been killed and 31 wounded in a shooting rampage on the Fort Hood Army base in Texas.

Lt. Gen. Bob Cone said at a news conference that one shooter has been killed and two suspects were apprehended on Thursday. He says they are all U.S. soldiers.

The shooting began around 1:30 p.m. Cone says that all the casualties took place at the base’s Soldier Readiness Center where soldiers who are about to be deployed or who are returning undergo medical screening.

He says the primary shooter used two handguns in the attack.

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***4:35 p.m. Update November 5***

U.S. Army: 1 Shooter In Custody In Deadly Attack At Fort Hood

FORT HOOD, Texas (AP) - A Fort Hood spokeswoman says one shooter is in custody after a mass shooting on the Texas Army base. Army officials say at least seven people are dead and 20 wounded.

Fort Hood spokeswoman Sgt. Rebekah Lampan says authorities believe at least two gunmen were involved in the attack on Thursday.

She says it is not known whether the shooters were soldiers or civilians.

Lt. Col. Nathan Banks, an Army spokesman in Washington, says there was a pair of shootings at the base.

Banks says the first shooting was at 1:30 p.m. and at personnel and medical processing office. He says the second incident took place at a theater on the base.

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***3:51 p.m. Update November 5***

Fort Hood Closed Amid Reports Of Several Killed

FORT HOOD, Texas (AP) - The U.S. Army has closed its massive Army base at Fort Hood, Texas, amid reports that several people have been shot and killed at the post.

The Web site of the base in central Texas has posted an alert that says, “Effective immediately Fort Hood is closed.“ The Web site said that units at the base have been ordered to account for all personnel.

The site says, “This is not a Drill. It is an Emergency Situation.“

Several television stations in Texas say several people were both killed and wounded in the shooting. Officials at the base and in the nearby town of Killeen, Texas, have not confirmed those accounts.

Fort Hood is located halfway between Austin and Waco.

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Fort Hood, TX - Seven people have been killed and 12 seriously injured after a shooter opened fire on Fort Hood, Thursday afternoon.

Fort Hood officials say one person is in custody, but are asking people to stay away from windows.

We’ve learned an incident has taken place at the sports dome, now known as the soldier readiness area.

The Nolanville Fire Department tells KXXV News Channel 25 that they’ve been asked to bring all available EMS and Rescue personnel.

Darnall Army Community Hospital reports they have received numerous victims. The spokeswoman could not confirm what types of injuries the victims were suffering.

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