WASHINGTON (November 9, 2009)—Fort Hood shooting suspect Maj. Nidal Malik Hasan reached out to communicate with a radical imam overseas who came under scrutiny in the past for possible links to terrorist groups, a U.S. official said Monday.

The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity because the person was not authorized to discuss the investigation, says said Hasan sent electronic communications to Anwar al Awlaki who writes a blog, which, among other things, denounces U.S. policies as anti-Muslim.

The official says U.S. counterterrorism officials picked up the messages, but that an inquiry into the matter was shelved because the contacts were not deemed to suggest a threat. Investigators are trying to determine whether Hasan has any links to terrorist groups.

Hasan, 39, was conscious and able to talk Monday at Brooke Army Medical Center in San Antonio, hospital spokesman Dewey Mitchell said.

Mitchell said Monday Hasan has been awake and able to talk since doctors took him off a ventilator on Saturday.

He’s in stable condition at Brooke, to which he was transferred Friday from Scott & White Hospital in Temple.

ABC News was reporting earlier Monday that Hasan had attempted to make contact with people associated with al Qaeda, and a radical imam with ties to two 9/11 hijackers praised Hasan as a hero in a posting on his Web site.

ABC quoted two U.S. officials who have been briefed on classified information in the case as saying intelligence agency monitors intercepted Hasan’s attempt to communicate with suspected al Qaeda figures.

The network said it wasn’t clear whether the military had been advised of the attempts.

Meanwhile, the posting Monday on the Web site for al Awlaki, who was a spiritual leader at two mosques where three 9/11 hijackers worshipped, said American Muslims who condemned the deadly shooting last week are hypocrites who have committed treason against their religion.

Two U.S. intelligence officials told The Associated Press the Web site was Al Awlaki's.

They spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss intelligence collection.

The message on the site said the only way a Muslim can justify serving in the U.S. military is if he intends to "follow in the footsteps of men like Nidal."

There are also reports Hasan may have attended the same mosque in Virginia as two of the 9/11 hijackers at the same time a radical imam preached there.

A law enforcement official, who spoke on condition of anonymity because of the ongoing investigation, said whether Hasan associated with the hijackers is something the FBI will probably look into.

The outreach director at the Dar al Hijrah Islamic Center said he doesn't know whether Hasan ever attended the mosque, but he confirmed that the Hasan family has participated in services there.

The mosque in Falls Church, Va. is one of the largest on the East Coast.

Thousands of worshippers attend prayers and services there every week.

The London Telegraph first reported the potential link between Hasan and the mosque.

Authorities say Hasan opened fire at a processing center Thursday at Fort Hood, the country's largest military installation, killing 13 and wounding nearly 30.

Several soldiers say Hasan shouted “Allahu Akbar” before he opened fire.

The shooting spree ended when civilian police officers shot Hasan.

Rossi says the center remains a crime scene, but that the base is "working on healing."