Updated @ 9:36am 11/6/09

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.

Washington (AP) -- Defense department officials say the army psychiatrist who opened fire on fellow soldiers at Fort Hood was slated for deployment to Iraq.

One of the military officials says Maj. Nidal Malik Hasan was in the preparation stage of deployment, which can take months. The official said Hasan had indicated he didn't want to go to Iraq but was willing to serve in Afghanistan.

The official did not have authorization to discuss the matter publicly and spoke on condition of anonymity.

A second military official said Hasan's family has Palestinian roots. There have been reports that he was harassed for his muslim religion, but the official says there is no indication Hasan filed a complaint within the military about that.

Fort Hood, Texas (AP) -- The top commander at Fort Hood is crediting a civilian police officer for stopping the shooting rampage that killed 13 people at the Texas post.

Lt. Gen. Bob Cone said Friday morning that Sgt. Kimberly Munley and her partner responded within three minutes of reported gunfire Thursday afternoon. Cone said Munley shot the gunman four times despite being shot herself.

Military officials said Munley was in stable condition Friday.

Cone said, "It was an amazing and an aggressive performance by this police officer."

Cone also said he was inspired by a woman who helped carry a wounded victim and used her blouse as a tourniquet, then realized she'd been shot in the hip.

The suspected gunman, Maj. Nidal Malik Hasan, is hospitalized on a ventilator.

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UPDATE: 11/5/09 9:40pm

A U.S. Army spokesman says the Fort Hood shootings suspect is alive and was not killed by authorities responding to the attack.

Lt. Gen. Bob Cone also says the death toll from the attack remains 12 after another victim died.

Authorities said immediately after Thursday's attack that they had killed the suspected shooter, but Cone now says the suspected shooter is alive and stable condition.

(COPYRIGHT 2009 BY THE ASSOCIATED PRESS. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.)

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UPDATE: 11/5/09 7:40PM

Officials with the Congressman's office say the 2 soldiers taken into custody in Fort Hood shootings have been released.

According to MSNBC, when Nidal Malik Hasan, an Army psychiatrist opened fire Thursday at Fort Hood, Texas, he shot 12 people and wounded 30 others before being shot to death.

Eleven of the victims died at the scene, military officials said.

A 12th died later at a hospital.

They say the Virginia-born soldier was single with no children. He was 39 years old.

He is a graduate of 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, MC., in 2001.

At Walter Reed, he did his internship, residency and a fellowship.
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A law enforcement official says a mass shooting suspect at Fort Hood has been identified as Army Maj. Malik Nadal Hasan.

The official said Hasan, believed to be in his late 30's, was killed after opening fire at the base.

The official spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to discuss the case publicly.

The official says investigators are trying to determine if Hasan was his birth name, or if he changed his name and converted to the islamic faith at some point in his life.

The U.S. Army says 12 people have been killed and 31 wounded in the shooting rampage..

Lieutenant General Bob Cone said at a news conference that two other suspects are now in custody.

The shooting began around 1:30 Thursday afternoon.

Cone says that all the casualties took place at the base's soldier readiness center where soldiers who are about to be deployed or who are returning undergo medical screening.

He says the primary shooter used two handguns in the attack.

Fort hood is about 85 miles north of Austin, Texas, and is the army's largest installation.

(COPYRIGHT 2009 BY THE ASSOCIATED PRESS. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.)