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Casey cautions on backlash against Muslims

WASHINGTON — Army Chief of Staff Gen. George Casey warned Sunday against focusing on the Muslim faith of the suspected Fort Hood shooter.

Maj. Nidal Malik Hasan, a psychiatrist at Fort Hood, Texas, is suspected of shooting 13 and wounding 29 during last week’s rampage.

An Army spokesman said Sunday that Hasan is in critical but stable condition at Brooke Army Medical Center in San Antonio. He was taken off a ventilator on Saturday.

Diversity provides ‘strength’

Casey said focusing on Hasan’s Muslim background could “heighten the backlash” against Muslims in the military, adding that diversity in the military “gives us strength.”

He also warned against reaching conclusions about motives until investigators have fully explored the attack. Reports state Hasan, a Muslim, was angry about the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq and worried about his pending deployment to Afghanistan.

Casey declined to answer other questions about the investigation into the shooting, but said evidence showed that Hasan acted alone.

Casey appeared on ABC’s “This Week,” CNN’s “State of the Union” and NBC’s “Meet the Press.”

About the victims

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