US Muslim group condemns Fort Hood attack (1st Lead)

Nov 6, 2009, 12:40 GMT

Washington - A prominent American Muslim group Friday condemned the attack on a Texas military base that has claimed the lives of at least 13 people.

The Washington-based Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) called the shootings by the Army psychiatrist, Major Nidal Malik Hasan, on Thursday a 'cowardly attack' that could not be justified in the name of religion.

Hasan, a Muslim, likely yelled the Muslim religious chant, Allah Akbar (God is great), before opening fire in a crowded medical center at Fort Hood, the base commander, Lieutenant General Robert Cone, told NBC news Friday morning.

Cone said 'there are first hand accounts' to that effect.

'No religious or political ideology could ever justify or excuse such wanton and indiscriminate violence,' CAIR said. 'The attack was particularly heinous in that it targeted the all-volunteer army that protects our nation.'

CAIR, which says it is the largest Muslim civil liberties and advocacy group in the country, called for the perpetrator to 'be punished to the full extent of the law.'

The death toll from the shootings rose from 12 to 13, as one of the victims died overnight. Another 30 people were injured in the shootings. All but two were members of the military, officials said Thursday.

The suspect in the killings is a US Army psychiatrist described as a devout Muslim who opposed the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan and had been trying to resign from the Army, according to media reports Friday.

Cone said Thursday that investigators, who now include the FBI, had not ruled out the possibility it was a terrorist attack, but said evidence indicated it was not likely.