# Australia urges platforms to block execution livestream > The Australian government says online platforms have a responsibility to prevent the livestreaming of a US military execution scheduled for December 3rd. - Title: Australia urges platforms to block execution livestream - Summary: The Australian government says online platforms have a responsibility to prevent the livestreaming of a US military execution scheduled for December 3rd… - Keywords: nidal malik hasan, fort hood shooting, execution livestream, australian government, online safety, sarah hanson-young, esafety commission, social media platforms, capital punishment, content moderation, news, politics - Source: the Guardian — https://theguardian.com/australia-news/2026/oct/12/australian-greens-us-firing-squad-execution-nidal-hasan-live-stream-ntwnfb - Published: 2026-10-12T03:27:55+00:00 - Read time: 2 min - Topics: nidal malik hasan, fort hood shooting, execution livestream, australian government, online safety, sarah hanson-young, esafety commission, social media platforms, capital punishment, content moderation, news, politics ## US plans to livestream execution The Pentagon said it would livestream the execution by firing squad of Nidal Malik Hasan on December 3rd, but has not confirmed how or on what platform. ## Who is Nidal Malik Hasan Hasan, a fifty-six-year-old former army psychiatrist, was sentenced to death in two thousand thirteen after being convicted of thirteen counts of premeditated murder and thirty-two counts of attempted premeditated murder. ## Fort Hood victims Twelve of the thirteen killed and thirty of the wounded in the two thousand nine Fort Hood mass shooting were soldiers. Hasan carried out the attack at the military base in Texas. ## International condemnation The plan has drawn severe concern in the US and internationally, including among politicians, religious leaders and human rights advocates, with critics comparing the Trump administration to dictatorships. ## UN warns of torture breach The United Nations office of the high commissioner for human rights warned that broadcasting the killing would amount to a public execution and breach the absolute prohibition of torture. ## Greens demand action Sarah Hanson-Young, the Greens communications spokesperson, wrote to minister Anika Wells and the eSafety commission urging they take whatever action is necessary to block the execution being broadcast in Australia. > I think this is incredibly shocking and barbaric, and Australians don't want this on our screens. ## Government response The Albanese government said vision of an execution being livestreamed would be deeply distressing to many Australians. Platforms have a responsibility to meet expectations that content won't appear on screens. > No one should be confronted with it, particularly younger Australians. ## Cross-party support Shadow communications minister Sarah Henderson called the execution abhorrent and violent, saying she had written to eSafety to ask whether federal regulations around broadcast of violent material would apply. ## Censorship concerns raised One Nation MP Barnaby Joyce called the public nature of the execution Roman amphitheatre stuff but expressed concerns about opening the door to a censorship ban on the internet. > If it's going to be livestreamed, how are you going to do that without creating the artifice to be able to block content on the internet? ## eSafety's available powers Under the Online Safety Act, the eSafety commissioner can order platforms to block Australians' access to content classified as refused classification under Australia's classification code. ## Recent precedents The eSafety commissioner ordered platforms to remove footage of a bishop stabbing in a Sydney church in two thousand twenty-four. X challenged the order, shifting eSafety to blocking Australian access rather than requiring removal. ## Broader digital duty framework Minister Anika Wells is negotiating a digital duty of care bill that would place further obligations on big tech to protect users from harmful content. The legislation is expected to be introduced this week. ## Key takeaway Australia's government and cross-party politicians are calling on social media platforms to block access to the planned livestream of Nidal Malik Hasan's execution by firing squad on December 3rd, citing harm to viewers.