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Casey: Fort Hood attack 'kick in the gut'

FORT HOOD, Texas, Nov. 6 (UPI) -- U.S. military bases worldwide went silent Friday to honor the victims of a bloody shooting rampage at Fort Hood, Texas, a day earlier.

Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates directed the observance at the Defense Department for the 13 people who died and the 30 others who were injured in Thursday's attack, the Pentagon said.

"These are soldiers who were preparing to do what they love for the country that they love," Army Secretary John McHugh said during a news conference at the base. "The Army family is strong. A great source of that strength is what we derive from each other."

"It's a kick in the gut," Army Chief of Staff Gen. George Casey said.

Authorities said alleged gunman Maj. Nidal Malik Hasan, 39, an Army psychiatrist at Darnall Army Medical Center, opened fire at the base's military processing center Thursday. Hasan was shot four times by a civilian police officer and remained hospitalized on a ventilator, the military said.

Flags at the White House and all federal buildings will fly at half-staff until Veterans Day to honor the Fort Hood victims, U.S. President Barack Obama said Friday.

"This is a modest tribute to those who lost their lives even as many were preparing to risk their lives for their country," Obama said. "And it's also a recognition of the men and women who put their lives on the line every day to protect our safety and uphold our values."

The Pentagon will provide "every necessary resource to ensure those in need have what they need, McHugh said.

Casey said stories he's heard about the response to the shooting made him proud to wear the uniform. He said medics participating in a graduation next door rushed to the shooting scene "in their caps and gowns" to render aid, and related how another man hauled four wounded people in his pickup truck to the hospital.

"I am very proud," Casey said. "We take care of our own. We will grieve as a family. And we will remain focused on our mission."

McHugh also offered his thanks and admiration to first responders and "those who use their battlefield life-saving training in the building as the situation was unfolding to save lives."

"This is the time for the Army family stands together," McHugh said. "This is a time when Army strong means what it say."

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Nation mourns Fort Hood shooting victims

FORT HOOD, Texas, Nov. 6 (UPI) -- Flags at all federal buildings will fly at half-staff until Veterans Day to honor the Fort Hood, Texas, massacre victims, U.S. President Obama said Friday.

"This is a modest tribute to those who lost their lives even as many were preparing to risk their lives for their country," Obama said in remarks delivered at the White House, which also will fly its flag at half-staff. "And it's also a recognition of the men and women who put their lives on the line every day to protect our safety and uphold our values."

Thirteen people died either at the Army base's Soldier Readiness Center or in area hospitals of injuries they sustained after being shot by alleged gunman Maj. Nidal Malik Hasan, 39, who began firing on soldiers as they prepared to deploy, Col. John Rossi, deputy commanding general at Fort Hood, said Friday during an early morning news conference.

Of the 30 people injured, 28 remained hospitalized, Rossi said. One civilian was among the 13 who died and several civilians were among the injured, he said.

Hasan was shot four times by a civilian police officer and remained hospitalized on a ventilator, Rossi said.

The female police officer was hospitalized in stable condition, Col. Steven Braverman, base hospital commander, said.

Obama said he met with FBI Director Robert Muller and the other relevant agencies to discuss their investigation "into what caused one individual to turn his gun on fellow servicemen and women."

"We don't know all of the answers yet, and I would caution against jumping to conclusions until we have all of the facts," Obama said.

Families and friends of the victims, as well as an entire nation, are grieving "for the valiant men and women who came under attack yesterday in one of the worst mass shootings ever to take place on an American military base," Obama said.

Rossi said base officials were focused on care for the wounded and behavioral needs of others, security of the military installation, notification of relatives and providing on-base grief counseling. Braverman said more behavioral health providers were being brought to Fort Hood "to reach out to anyone" needing their assistance.

The military said Hasan was an Army psychiatrist specializing in treating soldiers' post-traumatic stress and stationed at a hospital on the sprawling base in Central Texas.

Hasan was transferred from Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Washington to Darnall Army Medical Center on Fort Hood in July. He apparently was upset he was about to be deployed to Iraq or Afghanistan, relatives told several media outlets.

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Police capture Orlando office shooter

ORLANDO, Fla., Nov. 6 (UPI) -- Police arrested a man suspected of opening fire in an Orlando, Fla., office high-rise Friday, killing one person and wounding five, Mayor Buddy Dyer said.

One person died and five people suffered gunshot wounds, while another person experienced chest pains while being evacuated from the building, a police official said during a news conference.

Jason Rodriguez, 40, was apprehended at his mother's apartment just a few hours after the gunfire at the Legions Place structure, Orlando Police Chief Val Demings said.

"I really wish I knew his motive," Demings said, adding investigators were "working around the clock trying to find out why he did what he did today."

CNN reported the suspect was let go by Reynolds, Smith and Hills architectural and engineering firm, located in the building, because of performance issues in June 2007.

"We are confident at this point is it was one, lone gunman," Demings said.

Dyer and Demings said emergency personnel responded within a minute of receiving the 911 call. SWAT teams conducted a floor-by-floor search for the suspect.

The incident prompted prompted a lockdown at the Edgewater High School nearby and the Orlando Regional Medical Center closed its emergency room to patients to better handle the shooting victims, WESH-TV, Orlando, reported.

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U.N. Assembly accepts Goldstone Report

NEW YORK, Nov. 6 (UPI) -- The U.N. General Assembly has called on Israel and the Palestinian Authority to investigation the alleged Gaza war crimes detailed in the Goldstone Report.

Richard Goldstone, a South African judge and former human rights investigator, reported Hamas and Israel both targeted civilians before and during Israel's invasion of Gaza in December. While Goldstone, a Jewish supporter of Israel, criticized Hamas, which effectively controls Gaza, for firing rockets at communities in southern Israel, he was far tougher on Israel.

The General Assembly passed the resolution 118-14 Thursday, with the United States and Israel voting against it, The Christian Science Monitor reported. Alejandro Wolff, the deputy U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, described the Goldstone Report as "deeply flawed" with an "unbalanced focus on Israel."

About 1,300 Palestinians died during the three weeks of Operation Cast Lead in Gaza, while Israeli deaths are put at 14.

The resolution also asked the secretary general, Ban Ki-moon, to submit the report to the Security Council.

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Micheletti says unity government in place

TEGUCIGALPA, Honduras, Nov. 6 (UPI) -- Interim Honduran President Roberto Micheletti installed himself as head of a new unity government, drawing condemnation from ousted leader Jose Manuel Zelaya.

Micheletti announced late Thursday all of his Cabinet resigned to make way for a reconciliation cabinet to be named, CNN reported Friday.

"This cabinet is a result of an ample participation of different sectors of civil society as well as the political parties," he said. "Tonight with this new government, we're answering the call for the unity of all people of Honduras."

Zelaya told Honduran media outlets Micheletti's actions violated the accord, CNN reported. The reconciliation government, he said, must be led by the democratically elected president of Honduras.

"How can a person who has not been elected by anyone lead a government?" Zelaya said.

Representatives for Micheletti and Zelaya signed an agreement Oct. 30 to form a reconciliation government that would rule until a new president, to be elected Nov. 29, takes office in January. The accord included the possibility -- but no guarantee -- of Zelaya's reinstatement to the presidency.

The pact called for the unity government to be named by Thursday and stipulated that Honduran lawmakers, in consultation with others, would vote on whether Zelaya would be returned to power.

The political crisis stemmed from Zelaya's effort to hold a referendum that could have changed the constitution to allow longer presidential terms. He was ousted in June, but sneaked back into the country in September, taking refuge in the Brazilian Embassy.

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No reporters allowed inside Palin event

MILWAUKEE, Nov. 6 (UPI) -- Wisconsin Democratic Party Chairman Mike Tate said he is troubled by former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin's decision not to allow press into an upcoming event.

Tate criticized the fact that members of the press will not be allowed inside the Wisconsin Exposition Center at State Fair Park in Milwaukee when Palin speaks at Friday evening's Wisconsin Right to Life event, CNN said.

"You know, for someone who claims to be a rogue and isn't afraid of what other people think it really is sort of hypocritical to not let the media, the press cover your event," Tate said.

In addition to keeping out the press, individuals attending Friday's event will not be allowed to carry any recording devices, including cell phones and cameras.

CNN said while Wisconsin Republican Party Chairman Reince Priebus applauded the former Republican vice presidential candidate's visit to his state, he clarified his party was not involved in the event rules.