The US soldier who allegedly planned to bomb Fort Hood military base had a disruptive and defiant court appearance today, reports the AP. Pfc. Naser Abdo would not stand up when asked and yelled "Nidal Hasan Fort Hood 2009" as he was leaving, referring to the Army psychiatrist accused of shooting up the base. Authorities arrested Abdo—a 21-year-old native of Texas who converted to Islam when he was 17—at a motel near Fort Hood earlier this week. He was AWOL at the time.
The AP notes that he once wrote an essay about the 2009 shooting, condemning it as "an act of aggression by a man and not by Islam." Another sample of an earlier writing, in which he sought conscientious objector status: "Overall, as a Muslim I feel that I will not be able to carry out my military duties due to my conscientious objection. Therefore, unless I separate myself from the military, I would potentially be putting the soldiers I work with in jeopardy." (More Naser Abdo stories.)
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