As he burned, Bushnell repeatedly shouted "Free Palestine!" The fire was eventually extinguished bySecret Service officers.[3][4][5] TheMetropolitan Police Department also responded to assist the Secret Service. Bushnell was transported to a local hospital in critical condition and was declared dead in the evening.[6][7]
Bushnell's act was the second self-immolation protestingUnited States support for Israel in the Gaza war. In December 2023, another protestor set herself on fire at the Israeli consulate inAtlanta.[3][8] Some supporters of Palestine, including Palestinian militant groups, viewed Bushnell's act as heroic and called him amartyr.[9][10] Others argued that Bushnell's act should not be praised or viewed as a legitimate form of political protest, warning about "copycats" who might imitate it.[9]
A friend of Bushnell named Lupe Barboza said in an interview withAl Jazeera that Bushnell was religious andanti-imperialistic,[8] but that she did not think that Bushnell was mentally ill.[14] Other friends said that Bushnell's contract with the military was to expire in May and that, following the policemurder of George Floyd, Bushnell became more open in his objections with the military.[15]
Bushnell thought of himself as ananarchist.[7][16][11][17] Less than two weeks before his death, he talked with a friend about their shared identities as anarchists and the risks and sacrifices that are needed to be effective as anarchists.[7][16] Bushnell used the anarchist symbol as his profile photo on the Twitch account he used to livestream his self-immolation, and his username was "LillyAnarKitty". He also followed and liked several anarchist pages on Facebook.[17] In the last months of his life he also published many posts in various anarchism-related Reddit communities.[18]CrimethInc, an anarchist collective, claimed that Bushnell contacted it shortly before his death, asking it to "make sure that the footage is preserved and reported on".[17]
The Intercept found that Bushnell used aReddit account with the username "acebush1".[18][19][20] This user posted on Reddit denouncing Israel as a "settler colonialistapartheid state",[18] and wrote in a comment about the Israeli civilians murdered by Hamas at theNova music festival: "those people's fun at the music festival was specifically built on Palestinian suffering. There are no innocent civilians in se[t]ller colonialism".[21][22][23] He also called Hamas an "anti-colonial resistance organization", and according to one of his friends who was with him on October 7, their reaction to Hamas'sattack was "Cool, they broke out of their prison."[20]
December 2023 Atlanta self-immolation
Bushnell was not the first person in the US to use self-immolation to protest against Israel over the Palestinian humanitarian crisis.[8][24] On December 1, 2023, an individual, whose identity was not revealed by Atlanta authorities, protested via self-immolation outside the Israeli consulate inAtlanta, Georgia, which resulted in the protester having critical injuries.[25]
Event
Front gate of the Embassy of Israel, where Bushnell set himself on fire
Bushnell drafted a will before immolating himself, which left instructions for his savings to be donated to thePalestine Children's Relief Fund and his cat to be left with a neighbor after his death.[26][27] On February 25, 2024, 10:54 a.m. local time, the morning of his self-immolation, Bushnell had posted a message on Facebook: "Many of us like to ask ourselves, 'What would I do if I was alive duringslavery? Or theJim Crow South? Orapartheid? What would I do if my country was committing genocide?' The answer is, you're doing it. Right now."[28] He sent a message to media outlets: "Today, I am planning to engage in an extreme act of protest against thegenocide of thePalestinian people."[4]
I am an active duty member of the United States Air Force. And I will no longer be complicit in 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.[31][32][4]
Outside the embassy, Bushnell placed his camera down, positioned himself in front of the gates,[33] and poured a flammable liquid over himself. A security officer approached Bushnell, asking if he needed help, but was ignored.[4]
After igniting himself, Bushnell repeatedly shouted "Free Palestine!" as he was burning, and eventually collapsed to the ground.[4][5][34][35] The security officer radioed in for assistance. A Secret Service officer approached the scene, aimed a gun at Bushnell off-camera, and ordered him to "get on the ground" multiple times while a police officer yelled: "I don't need guns, I needfire extinguishers!"[36]Multiple officers responded to the scene and used fire extinguishers on Bushnell. He was transported to a local hospital by theDC Fire & EMS. At 8:06 p.m. local time, about seven hours after his self-immolation, Bushnell was declared dead from hisburn injuries.[7][37][38]
Investigation
TheSecret Service,Metropolitan Police Department, and theBureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives announced they would investigate the incident.[4] 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.[39]
A public incident report given to reporters by the Metropolitan Police Department states that Bushnell was "exhibiting signs ofmental distress"—namely that he had "doused himself with an unidentified liquid and set himself on fire"—before the Secret Service could reach him.[40] A spokesperson for the Israeli embassy reported that no staff members were injured in the incident.[39][41]
Reactions
Domestic
Elected officials
Asked by theAssociated Press 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 SecretaryPatrick S. Ryder reaffirmed US support for Israel's operations.[42][43][44]
The day after Bushnell's death, SenatorBernie Sanders said, "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."[45] On March 7, SenatorTom Cotton, who said that Bushnell committed an "act of horrific violence—in support of a terrorist group",[17] proposed two bills that would revoke thesecurity clearances of people who express support forforeign terrorist organizations and codify by statute regulations that ban military service members from participating in protests.[46]
Others
A vigil to Aaron Bushnell held outside of the Israeli embassy on February 26, 2024
Some on social media viewed Bushnell's act as heroic and sacrificial. Some Palestinians called him amartyr.[9][10] Others said his act should not be praised or viewed as a legitimate form of political protest, warning about "copycats" who might imitate it.[9] Some called the public adoration and praising of his act a "death cult".[49][50]Graeme Wood ofThe Atlantic wrote "Stop Glorifying Self-Immolation: The tendency to celebrate and encourage this behavior, or even to be moved by it, strikes me as deeply sick."[51]
Many who identified themselves as service members usedgallows humor when discussing Bushnell online. Others were critical of Bushnell's commanding officers, believing they could have helped deter him.[52]
On February 26, 2024, more than 100 people attended a vigil in Bushnell's memory in front of the Israeli embassy.[53] Additional vigils were held in other American cities, some organized by the anti-war groupCode Pink.[54] On February 28, 2024, a vigil was held outside of theWyatt Federal Building inPortland, Oregon, by advocacy groupAbout 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."[55]
Hamas praised the act and expressed "heartfelt condolences" to the friends and family of Bushnell, announcing in a statement onTelegram 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" and calling him a "heroic pilot".[58][28] ThePopular Front for the Liberation of Palestine released a statement honoring Bushnell, calling his death "the highest sacrifice."[59] Palestinian activistMohammed el-Kurd called it a "call to action" to "undermine these regimes that are killing us."[60]
Iran's Supreme LeaderAyatollah Khamenei highlighted Bushnell's actions in twoX posts made a few hours apart. The first called out the "West's disgraceful antihuman policies with regard to the genocide in Gaza". The second indicated thegenocide in Gaza was too much for "that young person who was brought up in the Western culture."[61] Writing inThe Jerusalem Post, Seth Frantzman accused pro-Iranian social media accounts of exploiting Bushnell's act of protest in English-language media at the Iranian regime's behest.[62]
Officials in the Palestinian city ofJericho announced on March 10 that they had named a street in Bushnell's honor.[63]
Some sources criticized mainstream media outlets' coverage of Bushnell's self-immolation for what they called attempts to "discredit" and "dilute" Bushnell's motive of protesting what he called the genocide of Palestinians. In anAl Jazeera column, Belén Fernández criticizedThe New York Times for not mentioning Bushnell's motive in the title of its report andTime for not elaborating on what she considers the "mentally disturbing" political reality of the U.S. backing Israel in the Gaza conflict.[64]The Guardian argued that pro-Israel news outlets implied without evidence that Bushnell was mentally ill.[65]
InThe Hill's commentary seriesRising,Briahna Joy Gray pointed out thatThe New York Times was treating Bushnell asymmetrically compared to its coverage ofIrina Slavina, a Russian journalist who died by self-immolation protesting the Russian government in 2020. TheTimes article about Slavina included the phrase "blaming government" in the title.[49]
Shortly following Bushnell's death, a fabricated screenshot circulated on social media showing aReddit account operated by Bushnell making the comment "Palestine will be free when all the jews[sic] are dead."Fact-checking websiteSnopes found the screenshot to be a hoax.[19]
Several people posted public comments claiming that a man seen on video pointing a gun at Bushnell was an Israeli guard; he was actually aUnited States Secret Service member who was trying to ensure the safety of two others who were attempting to extinguish the fire Bushnell set.[66]
MultipleX users published claims that the Israeli intelligence organizationMossad had mocked Bushnell's death. These turned out to be false claims based on mistaking aparody account for Mossad's account.[67][68]
Similar self-immolations
On September 11, 2024, a man set himself on fire near the Israeli consulate in Boston.[69] He was later identified as Matt Nelson, who posted a video on social media before the incident in which he referenced the "genocide in Gaza". Nelson died from his burn injuries on September 15.[70]
On October 5, 2024, Samuel Mena Jr., who identified himself as a journalist, set his arm on fire in front of theWhite House. He survived with non-life-threatening injuries as bystanders poured water and put the flame out with towels. Before the incident, Mena posted onsocial media slogans such as "End settler colonialism" and "From the river to the sea".[71]
^abZuylen-Wood, Simon van (June 19, 2024)."Aaron Bushnell's Agonies".Intelligencer.Archived from the original on June 20, 2024. RetrievedJune 21, 2024.
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Media related toSelf-immolation of Aaron Bushnell at Wikimedia Commons
