Self-immolation of Aaron Bushnell

Self-immolation of Aaron Bushnell

Part of the Israel–Hamas war protests in the United States
Bushnell on fire in front of the Israeli embassy
Date	February 25, 2024 (2024-02-25)
Location	Washington, D.C., United States
Coordinates	38°56′32.9″N 77°04′04.4″W
Type	Self-immolation
Motive	Opposition to United States support for Israel in the Israel–Hamas war
Deaths	Aaron Bushnell

On February 25, 2024, Aaron Bushnell, a 25-year-old serviceman of the United States Air Force, committed an act of self-immolation outside the front gate of the Embassy of Israel in Washington, D.C. Immediately prior to the live-streamed act, Bushnell said that he was protesting against "what people have been experiencing in Palestine at the hands of their colonizers" and declared that he "will no longer be complicit in genocide", after which he doused himself with a flammable liquid and set himself on fire. As he burned, Bushnell repeatedly shouted "Free Palestine!" while a police officer pointed a gun at him and local emergency services arrived on scene.

The act was live-streamed on Twitch. The Metropolitan Police Department responded to assist the United States Secret Service after Bushnell set himself on fire, and he was transported to a local hospital in critical condition. D.C. police confirmed his death the following day. Bushnell's act was the second self-immolation protesting against the United States' support for Israel in the Israel–Hamas war at an Israeli diplomatic station in the United States; another protestor set herself on fire at the country's Atlanta consulate in December 2023.

Background

Bushnell's upbringing and views

Bushnell grew up in Orleans, Massachusetts, in the Community of Jesus compound. He started his career with the United States Air Force (USAF) in May 2020, having done Basic & Technical Training. He was trained as a Client Systems Technician, having been educated in cybersecurity. He later worked as a USAF DevOps engineer in San Antonio, Texas, and was pursuing an undergraduate degree in software engineering from Southern New Hampshire University. A friend of Bushnell by the name of Lupe Barboza in an interview with Al Jazeera commented that Bushnell was religious and anti-imperialistic, but she did not think that Bushnell was mentally ill. Other friends noted that Bushnell's contract with the military was to expire in May and that, following the police murder of George Floyd, Bushnell became more open in his objections with the military.

Event

Bushnell created a will before self-immolating, which left instructions for his savings to be donated to the Palestine Children's Relief Fund and that his cat be left with a neighbor after his death. He sent a message to media outlets before his planned self-immolation, where he wrote "Today, I am planning to engage in an extreme act of protest against the genocide of the Palestinian people". On the morning of the day of his self-immolation, he posted a message: "Many of us like to ask ourselves, 'What would I do if I was alive during slavery? Or the Jim Crow South? Or apartheid? What would I do if my country was committing genocide?' The answer is, you’re doing it. Right now."

Front gate of the Embassy of Israel, where Bushnell set himself on fire.

On February 25, 2024, at approximately 12:58 p.m. local time, Bushnell, dressed in military fatigues, approached the Israeli Embassy in Washington, D.C., intending to immolate himself as an act of protest against the war in Gaza. He had also created a Twitch account under the name "LillyAnarKitty" with a Palestinian flag as his profile banner with the caption "Free Palestine". While live-streaming, he walked towards the embassy and said,

I am an active duty member of the United States Air Force. And I will no longer be complicit to genocide. I am about to engage in an extreme act of protest. But compared to what people have been experiencing in Palestine at the hands of their colonizers—it's not extreme at all. This is what our ruling class has decided will be normal.

Outside the embassy, Bushnell placed his camera down, positioned himself in front of the gates, and poured a flammable liquid over himself. A security officer approached Bushnell, asking if he needed help, but was ignored.

After igniting himself, Bushnell repeatedly shouted "Free Palestine!" as he was burning, and eventually collapsed to the ground. The security officer radioed in for assistance. A police officer approached the scene, aimed a gun at Bushnell off-camera, and ordered him to "get on the ground" multiple times while another officer yelled "I don't need guns, I need fire extinguishers!" Multiple officers responded to the scene and used fire extinguishers on Bushnell. He was transported to a local hospital by the DC Fire & EMS, where he later died from his burn injuries at the age of 25.

Investigation

The Secret Service, Metropolitan Police Department, and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives announced they would investigate the incident. The Metropolitan Police refused to confirm the authenticity of the livestream, and the US Air Force cited family notification policies while refusing to speak initially on the situation. A bomb disposal unit was dispatched to investigate concerns of a suspicious vehicle that could have been connected to Bushnell. The area was later declared safe after nothing hazardous was discovered.

A public incident report given to reporters by the Metropolitan Police Department states that Bushnell was "exhibiting signs of mental distress"—namely that he had "doused himself with an unidentified liquid and set himself on fire"—before the Secret Service could reach him. A spokesperson for the Israeli embassy reported that no staff members were injured in the incident.

Reactions

Domestic

When responding to the question by the Associated Press on whether "Bushnell's self-immolation might indicate that there is a deeper issue" with US military personnel being concerned about how weapons are used, Pentagon Press Secretary Patrick S. Ryder reaffirmed US support for Israel's operations.

Following his self-immolation, Bushnell's actions were praised by activists such as Aya Hijazi and Dyab Abou Jahjah, as well as United States Green Party candidate Jill Stein and independent candidate Cornel West. Senator Bernie Sanders stated that, "It's obviously a terrible tragedy, but I think it speaks to the depths of despair that so many people are feeling now about the horrific humanitarian disaster taking place in Gaza, and I share those deep concerns."

Some on social media viewed his act as heroic and sacrificial; others considered Bushnell to have resorted to extreme measures by ending his own life. Many who identified themselves as service members made gallows humor based comments, such as calling him "the Airman a la Flambé", while speaking about Bushnell online. Others were critical of Bushnell's commanding officers, believing they could have helped sway him from his actions.

On February 26, 2024, a vigil in his memory was held in front of the Israeli embassy. It was attended by 100 people. Additional vigils were held in other American cities, some organized by the anti-war group Code Pink. On February 28, 2024, a vigil was held outside of the Wyatt Federal Building in Portland, Oregon by advocacy group About Face: Veterans Against the War, in which multiple veterans lined up and took turns burning their military clothing in front of a banner reading "Veterans say: Free Palestine! Remember Aaron Bushnell".

International

Hamas praised the act and expressed "heartfelt condolences" to the friends and family of Bushnell, announcing in a statement on Telegram that "he immortalised his name as a defender of human values and the oppression of the suffering Palestinian people because of the American administration and its unjust policies" while describing him as a "heroic pilot". The Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine released a statement honoring Bushnell, describing the act as "the highest sacrifice".

Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Khamenei highlighted Bushnell's actions in two Twitter statements that were posted a few hours apart. The first called out the "West's disgraceful antihuman policies with regard to the genocide in Gaza" while the other indicated the genocide in Gaza was too much for "that young person who was brought up in the Western culture."

Media coverage

See also: Media coverage of the Israel–Hamas war

The coverage of Bushnell's self-immolation by mainstream media outlets drew criticism for attempting to "discredit" and "dilute" Bushnell's motive of protesting against Palestinian genocide. In an Al Jazeera column, Belén Fernández gave an example of The New York Times which mentioned nothing about Bushnell's motive in the title of their report and implied that Bushnell might be mentally ill by providing contact information for a mental health provider at the end of the Times article about Bushnell. The Hill pointed out that the Times was treating Bushnell asymmetrically compared to their coverage of Irina Slavina, a Russian journalist who died protesting by self-immolation against the Russian government in 2020. The Times article about Slavina included the phrase "blaming government" in the title.

Misinformation

Shortly following Bushnell's death, a fabricated screenshot circulated on social media showing a Reddit account allegedly owned by Bushnell making the comment "Palestine will be free when all the jews are dead." On February 28, 2024, fact-checking website Snopes determined this claim to be fake due to the comment in question not being found when searching comments made by the account, including ones that have been deleted. The account did, however, post a comment denying that any Israeli has no involvement in the country's engagement of oppression, and justifying the Re'im music festival massacre as a legitimate act of war against "settlers."

See also

• List of political self-immolations