09.10.2026 17:30
Britain has reacted to the planned live broadcast of the execution of a former US soldier. The plan to air footage of the execution worries many countries.
Britain has reacted to a plan to livestream the execution by firing squad of a former US soldier who caused the deaths of 13 people. Many countries are preparing to ban the broadcast of the execution footage.
Former soldier Nidal Hasan, convicted of killing 13 people at a US military base, is scheduled to be executed by firing squad on December 3, and the execution is planned to be livestreamed worldwide. However, the Pentagon’s decision to broadcast Hasan’s final moments has sparked a fierce international debate over the limits of the state’s power to punish.
Labour Party leader Bridget Phillipson, while stating that the execution decision is a matter for the US government, emphasized that Britain has opposed the death penalty for many years. Cabinet member Phillipson also said that she personally found the possibility of the execution being livestreamed “quite disturbing.”
Phillipson’s remarks are assessed as potentially leading to a new diplomatic tension with the Donald Trump administration. This development came at a time when Andy Burnham’s efforts to improve relations between Britain and the US were continuing.
US Secretary of War Pete Hegseth, meanwhile, defended the decision to execute Hasan by firing squad. Hegseth stated that the public needs to understand that such crimes have serious consequences, describing the execution decision as “an unquestionable choice.”
Trump personally approved Hasan’s execution decision on Monday after Hegseth’s recommendation.
Hasan, 56, a former US Army major, is scheduled to be executed in the first week of December at 1:00 p.m. local time, or 7:00 p.m. Greenwich Mean Time (GMT).
However, the decision has also raised concerns about whether countries can prevent execution footage from reaching their citizens.
New Zealand may not be able to block the livestream
New Zealand warned that it may be unable to prevent violent footage of the execution from being published online across the country.
New Zealand’s Classification Office announced that it does not have the authority to stop live internet broadcasts, despite growing public backlash against violent images.
A spokesperson for the agency said, “The Classification Office does not have the authority to classify a livestream while it is ongoing. Neither we nor any other agency has the authority to block access to the livestream.”
Chief Censor Caroline Flora, meanwhile, stated that a delicate balance must be struck between public safety and freedom of expression when it comes to banning disturbing content.
Flora said, “No matter how disturbing a piece of content is, that does not mean it is always illegal.”
The debate is seen as a particularly sensitive issue in New Zealand. In 2019, a gunman killed 51 people in attacks on two mosques in the country and livestreamed the moments of the attack on Facebook.
After the massacre, then-Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern led international initiatives aimed at preventing the spread of violent content on the internet.
Now, the possibility that the US government might livestream an execution has brought concerns that violent images could spread uncontrollably online back onto the agenda.
Reaction from Amnesty International to the US
The Australian branch of Amnesty International also condemned the decision and called on Prime Minister Anthony Albanese to appeal to the Washington administration and demand that the livestream plan be abandoned.
The organization’s campaign manager, Kyinzom Dhongdue, described the proposal to livestream an execution by firing squad to the public as “a horrific disregard for human dignity.”
Dhongdue said, “Turning an execution carried out by the state into a public spectacle further increases the cruelty of the death penalty.”
The White House, meanwhile, avoided commenting on whether Trump personally supports broadcasting the execution on television. Officials said the questions should be directed to the Pentagon.
Although public executions are becoming increasingly rare worldwide, Iran and Taliban-ruled Afghanistan are among the countries where such executions have been carried out in recent years.