Fort Hood shooting suspect charged with murder

Nov 12, 2009, 17:27 GMT

Washington - The suspected shooter in the Fort Hood, Texas rampage has been charged with 13 counts of murder and will be tried in a military court, the US Army announced Thursday.

Major Nidal Malik Hasan is accused of opening fire with two handguns November 5 at a Fort Hood facility for preparing troops for overseas deployment.

Hasan, a 39 year-old Army psychiatrist, is believed to have carried out the worst shooting ever at a US military installation. The shooting spree left 12 soldiers and a civilian employee at the base dead. Forty-three others were wounded.

Authorities were still investigating the motive behind the attack. There have been reports that Hasan, a devout Muslim, was disgruntled over his pending deployment to the war in Afghanistan.

During his years in the military, Hasan had reportedly become increasingly vocal about his religious faith and opposition to the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq.

Hasan suffered gunshot wounds from a female police officer who is credited with ending the shooting. Hasan remained hospitalized and was expected to recover.