12 seconds ago 2009-11-27T17:51:01-08:00
WASHINGTON (AFP) – US Defense Secretary Robert Gates will travel to Texas on Monday to meet with families of those killed in a shooting rampage at the Fort Hood military base, his press secretary said.
Before attending a memorial service on Tuesday afternoon for the 13 killed in the attack, Gates also was due to visit some of the 30 wounded, including police sergeant Kimberly Munley -- hailed as a heroine for her role in confronting the gunman.
Gates planned to have a breakfast meeting with the commander at the base, General Robert Cone, and the top US military officer, Admiral Mike Mullen, press secretary Geoff Morrell told reporters.
The defense secretary was receiving regular updates on the investigation into the shooting that has been blamed on a Muslim army doctor due to be deployed to Afghanistan, he said.
Gates wanted to allow the investigation to take its course, he said.
"I think he is among those who would caution people about rushing to judgment on this," Morrell said.
"He wants to let the professional investigators do their work, and have a more complete body of evidence before he or anyone else draws any conclusions about what motivated this suspected shooter."
The alleged gunman, Major Nidal Hasan, 39, an army psychiatrist, has been taken off a ventilator and regained consciousness, hospital officials said.
Sixteen of the 30 people wounded by volleys from the semi-automatic and the handgun allegedly wielded by Hasan remained in hospital on Sunday as doctors warned many would be permanently scarred by their injuries.
