War comes home to roost at Fort Hood base

Fort Hood commander Lieutenant General Robert Cone said that Major Nidal Malik Hasan shouted: "Allahu Akbar" - God is great - before the rampage on Thursday that also left 30 people wounded.

Maj Hasan was shot four times and is in a stable condition in hospital, where he is to be interrogated by military officials.

Maj Hasan reportedly came to the attention of the law enforcement agencies six months ago when internet postings about suicide bombings and other threats appeared online, including posts that equated suicide bombers to US soldiers who threw themselves on a grenade to save the lives of others.

They had not determined for certain whether Maj Hasan was the author of the postings and a formal investigation had not been opened before the shooting.

On Thursday night federal agents ordered an evacuation of the block of flats where he lived and conducted a search of his home.

Retired army colonel Terry Lee, who worked with Maj Hasan, said his colleague had hoped US President Barack Obama would pull troops out of Afghanistan and Iraq and had got into frequent arguments with others in the military who supported the wars.

In a statement issued on behalf of their family, Maj Hasan's cousin Nadar Hasan expressed "heartfelt sympathies" for the families of the victims.

And he revealed that Maj Hasan had resisted his impending deployment to Iraq. "We've known over the last five years that was probably his worst nightmare," he commented.