U.S Airman lights himself on fire in protest of Israeli invasion
On Feb. 25, 25-year-old active duty U.S Airman, Aaron Bushnell, set himself on fire ultimately killing himself in an act of self-immolation in front of the Israeli embassy in Washington D.C, in an act of protest of the ongoing Israeli invasion of Gaza. His last words were, “Free Palestine.”
Before the act, Bushnell set up a live video on his phone and posted it to the streaming platform, stating his reasoning. “I am an active duty member in the United States Airforce and I will no longer be complicit in genocide. I’m about to engage in an extreme act of protest, but compared to what people have been experiencing in Palestine, in the hands of their colonizers, is not extreme at all. This is what our ruling class has decided will be normal,” Bushnell said.
Bushnell repeated “Free Palestine,” seven times.
As Bushnell laid unconscious burning on the concrete, two unidentified security personnel arrived at his body shouting, “Get him on the ground,” and “Get the fire extinguisher.” One personnel attempted to snuff the flame with a fire extinguisher while the other stood and pointed a gun at the unconscious Bushnell. As the ambulance arrived another unidentified person yelled out “I don’t need guns, I need a fire extinguisher.” Once the flames were doused by Secret Service officers, Aaron Bushnell was taken to the hospital and died on Feb. 26 due to the injuries.
According to the Gaza Health Ministry, over 30,000 Palestinians have been killed. According to the United Nations, an additional 2 million Palestinians have been forcibly displaced within the past 149 days. Aaron Bushnell’s act of self-immolation is the second since December when a woman lit herself on fire in front of the Israeli Consulate in Atlanta, GA.
