Death toll rises to 13 in Fort Hood attack (2nd Lead)
Nov 6, 2009, 14:10 GMT
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He had been seeking a discharge for several years from the army, which put him through college and medical school, but had apparently had his request rejected, relatives said.
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His cousin, Nader Hasan, told the New York Times that the major was \'mortified by the idea of having to deploy. He had people telling him on a daily basis the horrors they saw over there.\'
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His aunt in Falls Church, Virginia, told the Washington Post that Hasan had been heckled by fellow soldiers for his Muslim faith in the years since the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks on the US.
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\'I know what that is like,\' Noel Hasan was quoted as saying. \'Some people can take it, and some cannot. He had listened to all of that, and he wanted out of the military, and they would not let him leave even after he offered to repay\' for his medical training.
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Colonel Terry Lee, a co-worker of Hasan\'s, told Fox News that Hasan had once said that Muslims should \'stand up and fight against the aggressor\' and that the US should not be fighting the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.
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Hasan had been impacted by his work with sounded solders, and by the physical and mental injuries he saw at Walter Reed, his aunt said.
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\'He must have snapped,\' Noel Hasan told the Post. \'They ignored him. It was not hard to know when he was upset.\'
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She said he was a loner who had no girlfriend and was not married.
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When living in the Washington area, he went regularly to the Muslim Community Center in Silver Spring, Maryland, wearing Army fatigues, according to the former imam there, Faizul Khan.
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Khan told the Post that he came to the mosque several times looking for a suitable woman to marry, but had \'too many conditions\' to be satisfied with anyone.
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The possibility of a terrorist motive also concerned a woman in the local Muslim community, who noted the effect it could have on how people view Islam.
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\'My prayers go out to all the families,\' Iman Mahmood Hasan bin Hamad told the Statesman. \'I\'m really sorry about what\'s going on. I know the stereotype, but not all Muslims have this intention.\'
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