‘I am the shooter,’ declares defendant at start of Fort Hood trial

The trial of accused Ft. Hood shooter Maj. Nidal Malik
Hasan began on Tuesday in Texas.

Hasan is representing himself, which means he
will be cross-examining many of the people he is accused of shooting.

He said in his opening statement that “the evidence will
clearly show that I am the shooter,” according to the Associated Press.

{mosads}Hasan, an
American-born Muslim, added later that it also would show “that we are
imperfect Muslims trying to establish the perfect religion … I apologize for
any mistakes I made in this endeavor.”

The trial got underway amid heavy security,
as a long row of stacked shipping freight containers created a makeshift fence
around the military courthouse, The Associated Press reported.

Hasan is charged with killing 13 people and injuring 32
others in the massacre at the Texas base in 2009 and could face the death
penalty.

Staff Sgt.
Alonzo Lunsford, who was blinded in his left eye in the shooting, told
CBS News that the questioning from Hasan will be “extremely hard” for him to deal with.

“It’s going to be very difficult,” he said.
“Because inside me, I want him to physically feel what it feels like to
have his life in my hands.

“No matter what type of smirk or what time of smart
comment that he comes out with, I stay on point, on topic, straight to the
point,” Lunsford said.

In his opening statement, military prosecutor Col. Steve
Henricks said that Hasan deliberately targeted soldiers and planned to “kill
as many soldiers as he could,” according to the AP.

Henricks said that Hassan sought to clear the area of civilians
before he started shooting, telling one woman that a supervisor was looking for
her elsewhere.

“He then yelled ‘Allahu akbar!’ and opened fire on
unarmed, unsuspecting and defenseless soldiers,” Henricks told the jury, according
to the AP.

The military judge Col. Tara Osborn said that the trial could
last several months.