Association for Defending Victims of Terrorism – An active member of the United States military has set himself on fire outside the Israeli embassy in Washington, DC, according to officials, in an apparent act of protest against Israel’s devastating war on Gaza.
Aaron Bushnell, 25, was rushed to the hospital on Sunday with “critical life-threatening injuries”, according to the US capital’s fire department.
The agency said emergency responders rushed to the scene just before 1pm (18:00 GMT) in response to a “call for person on fire outside the Israeli embassy”. They arrived to find that officers from the US Secret Service had already extinguished the fire.
The US Air Force confirmed the incident involved an active duty airman.
US media reports said Bushnell livestreamed himself on Twitch, wearing fatigues and declaring he would “not be complicit in genocide” before dousing himself in liquid.
He then lit himself on fire while yelling “Free Palestine!” until he fell to the ground.
The footage has since been removed from Twitch. Local police said they are investigating the incident.
