ABSTRACT
Nidal Malik Hasan was born on September 8, 1970, in Virginia to Palestinian parents who had emigrated from the West Bank in the 1960s. Hasan’s parents ran small businesses—a convenience store and two restaurants—which Hasan and his two brothers helped with until they left home for college and professional schools. Hasan’s uncle described him as “a gentle, quiet, deeply sensitive man,” even going so far as to describe a pet bird that Hasan had once owned, and which he fed by placing the bird in his mouth and offering it masticated food. Relatives said that Hasan retained a lawyer in an attempt to get discharged from the army, but he believed it was impossible. Hasan clearly revered Anwar al-Awlaki’s teachings, and he sent al-Awlaki as many as twenty emails from December 2008 forward. Speculation began immediately, with some citing Hasan’s fear of deployment, others his contact with al-Awlaki.
