Updated 8:22 a.m 11-6

FORT HOOD, Texas (AP) —

The base commander at Fort Hood says soldiers who witnessed a shooting rampage that left 13 people dead reported that the gunman shouted "Allahu Akbar!" before opening fire at the Texas post.

Lt. Gen. Robert Cone told NBC's "Today" show on Friday that suspected shooter, Maj. Nidal Malik Hasan, made the comment, which is Arabic for "God is great!" before the rampage Thursday that also left 30 people wounded.

Military officials say they are still piecing together what may have pushed Hasan, an Army psychiatrist trained to help soldiers in distress, to turn on his comrades.

Cone says Hasan was not known to be a threat or risk.

Hasan was shot four times during the rampage. Cone says he is hospitalized in stable condition and that military officials will interrogate him as soon as possible.
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9:34 p.m. 11/5/2009

A U.S. Army major shot and killed 12 people and wounded 31 others at Fort Hood Thursday afternoon.

Military officials in Washington identified the shooter as Major Nidal Malik Hasan, a psychiatrist.

Lt. General Bob Cone, the commanding general at Ft. Hood, says the gunman was shot and is now in military custody at a Killeen-area hospital.

Two other soldiers who were taken into custody as part of the investigation were released Thursday evening.

The gunman used two handguns, according to Cone. He said the motive is not yet known.

Cone says the shooting happened at a personnel processing center called the Soldier Readiness Center, which is comprised of several buildings. Cone says the shooting took place only at the processing center.

The shooting started at 1:30 Thursday afternoon.

"It's a terrible tragedy. It's stunning," Cone said.

The post was immediately put on lockdown, but that state of emergency ended just after 7 p.m. when the post was reopened.

Initially two additional suspects were taken into military custody on the post, but were released Thursday evening.

The wounded were sent to hospitals across Central Texas, Cone said. Scott and White Hospital, a major trauma center in Temple, said it had received nine shooting victims.

Military officials in Washington say the Hasan was a psychiatrist at Walter Reed Army Medical Center for six years before being transferred to Ft. Hood in July.

Those same officials, who did not want to be named, say Hasan received a poor performance evaluation while at Walter Reed.

Reports have surfaced that military officials "had concerns" about Hasan for at least six months because of internet postings that discussed suicide bombings and other threats.

U.S. Senator Kay Bailey Hutchison says she was told Hasan was about to deploy overseas. It's not clear whether he was going to Iraq or Afghanistan and exactly when he was scheduled to leave.

The Virginia-born soldier was single with no children. He graduated from 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.

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.

FBI agent Eric Vasys in the Bureau's San Antonio office says agents were headed to the post as part of the investigation. Gen. Cone said Army investigators would work with the FBI to look into the backgrounds of the soldiers involved.

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.

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

In a statement, Sen. Hutchison said, "I am shocked and saddened by todays outburst of violence at Fort Hood that has cost seven of our brave service members their lives and has gravely injured others. My heart goes out to their loved ones. Our dedicated military personnel have sacrificed so much in service to our country, and it sickens me that the men and women of Fort Hood have been subjected to this senseless, random violence."

Governor Rick Perry also issued a statement, which read, "The Texas family suffered a significant loss today with the tragedy at Fort Hood. Along with all Texans, Anita and I are keeping those affected by today's incidents in our thoughts and prayers. We are deeply saddened by today's events, but resolve to continue supporting our troops and protecting our citizens."

Fort Hood is the largest U.S. Army post in the world, covering 339 square miles. Tens of thousands of soldiers are stationed there.

18 major Army units are stationed at the post, including the 1st Cavalry Division and parts of the 4th Infantry Division. It's about 160 miles south of Dallas/Fort Worth, adjacent to the city of Killeen in Central Texas.

The Red Cross has set up a web site to allow people to check on their loved ones at Fort Hood. The address is safeandwell.org.
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Updated 8:05 p.m. 11/5/2009

Military officials in Washington identified the shooter as Major Nidal Malik Hasan, a psychiatrist.

Lt. General Bob Cone, the commanding general at Ft. Hood, says the gunman was shot and killed by police on post. Two other soldiers who were taken into custody as part of the investigation were released Thursday evening.

The gunman used two handguns, according to Cone. He said the motive is not yet known.

Cone says the shooting happened at a personnel processing center called the Soldier Readiness Center, which is comprised of several buildings. Cone says the shooting took place only at the processing center.

The shooting started at 1:30 Thursday afternoon.

"It's a terrible tragedy. It's stunning," Cone said.

Cone says the post says is in lockdown.

The wounded were sent to hospitals across Central Texas, Cone said. Scott and White Hospital, a major trauma center in Temple, said it had received nine shooting victims.

Military officials in Washington say the Hasan was a psychiatrist at Walter Reed Army Medical Center for six years before being transferred to Ft. Hood in July.

Those same officials, who did not want to be named, say Hasan received a poor performance evaluation while at Walter Reed.

U.S. Senator Kay Bailey Hutchison says she was told Hasan was about to deploy overseas. It's not clear whether he was going to Iraq or Afghanistan and exactly when he was scheduled to leave.

The Virginia-born soldier was single with no children. He graduated from 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.

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.

FBI agent Eric Vasys in the Bureau's San Antonio office says agents were headed to the post as part of the investigation. Gen. Cone said Army investigators would work with the FBI to look into the backgrounds of the soldiers involved.

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.

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

In a statement, Sen. Hutchison said, "I am shocked and saddened by todays outburst of violence at Fort Hood that has cost seven of our brave service members their lives and has gravely injured others. My heart goes out to their loved ones. Our dedicated military personnel have sacrificed so much in service to our country, and it sickens me that the men and women of Fort Hood have been subjected to this senseless, random violence."

Governor Rick Perry also issued a statement, which read, "The Texas family suffered a significant loss today with the tragedy at Fort Hood. Along with all Texans, Anita and I are keeping those affected by today's incidents in our thoughts and prayers. We are deeply saddened by today's events, but resolve to continue supporting our troops and protecting our citizens."

Fort Hood is the largest U.S. Army post in the world, covering 339 square miles. Tens of thousands of soldiers are stationed there.

18 major Army units are stationed at the post, including the 1st Cavalry Division and parts of the 4th Infantry Division. It's about 160 miles south of Dallas/Fort Worth, adjacent to the city of Killeen in Central Texas.

The Red Cross has set up a web site to allow people to check on their loved ones at Fort Hood. The address is safeandwell.org.

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Updated 6:06 p.m. 11/5/2009

An AP source says one shooting suspect was Army mental
health professional.

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Updated 5:19 p.m. 11/5/2009

12 people are dead and 31 others injured after a shooting at Fort Hood in central Texas Thursday afternoon.

Lt. General Bob Cone, the commanding general at Ft. Hood, says the gunman, a soldier, is dead. He says two other soldiers are suspects and are in custody.

Cone says local police shot and killed the gunman, and one Ft. Hood civilian police officer is among the dead.

He also said the gunman used two handguns.

Cone says the shooting happened at a personnel processing center, which is comprised of several buildings. Cone says the shooting took place only at the processing center.

The shooting started at 1:30 Thursday afternoon.

Another Army official, who did not want to be named, told the Associated Press that a graduation was scheduled for 2 p.m. Thursday in the theater.

The Army post says it is in lockdown and is urging everyone on post to remain indoors and stay away from windows and doors.

All nine schools on the post are in lockdown as a precaution, and nearby Temple ISD schools are reportedly on lockdown as well.

FBI agent Eric Vasys in the Bureau's San Antonio office says agents were headed to the post as part of the investigation.

In a statement, U.S. Senator Kay Bailey Hutchison said, "I am shocked and saddened by todays outburst of violence at Fort Hood that has cost seven of our brave service members their lives and has gravely injured others. My heart goes out to their loved ones. Our dedicated military personnel have sacrificed so much in service to our country, and it sickens me that the men and women of Fort Hood have been subjected to this senseless, random violence."

Fort Hood is the largest U.S. Army post in the world, with thousands of soldiers stationed there.

18 major Army units are stationed at the post, including the 1st Cavalry Division and parts of the 4th Infantry Division.

It's about 160 miles south of Dallas/Fort Worth, adjacent to the city of Killeen in Central Texas.

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WASHINGTON (AP) -- The Army says seven people were killed and 20
wounded in a pair of shootings at the Fort Hood Army base in Texas.
An Army spokesman at the Pentagon says the shootings began about
1:30 p.m. Thursday at a personnel and medical processing center at
Fort Hood.
The spokesman, Lieutenant Colonel Nathan Banks, says two
shooters were apparently involved. There is no word yet on who they
were, nor on identities of the dead.
Banks says the second incident took place at a theater on the
sprawling base.
He says it is too soon to tell whether there is any link to
battle stress or repeated deployments. The Army is suffering a
record high suicide rate and other signs of stress from fighting
two wars.