US airman dies after setting himself on fire outside Israeli embassy

FRANCE 24 English

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00:00 An active protest against the war in Gaza that ended in a death in Washington DC.

00:07 25-year-old Aaron Bushnell was an active duty member of the US Air Force.

00:12 On Sunday he set himself alight outside the Israeli embassy in the US capital.

00:17 On Monday he died from his injuries.

00:20 "I know the Air Force has confirmed the airman's death.

00:23 They do plan to provide additional information 24 hours after next of kin notifications are

00:28 complete.

00:30 It certainly is a tragic event.

00:32 We do extend our condolences to the airman's family."

00:35 The Pentagon spokesperson wouldn't be drawn on questions about whether US military personnel

00:39 might be concerned about how US support for Israel is being used on civilians in Gaza,

00:45 saying only that the defence department was focused on supporting Israel's right to defend

00:50 itself, working to release the hostages and ensuring the conflict doesn't escalate.

00:56 Bushnell's act was intended to be highly public.

00:59 Wearing his Air Force uniform, he went to the Israeli embassy on Sunday afternoon and

01:03 went live on the video streaming platform Twitch.

01:06 He told viewers he would no longer be complicit in genocide.

01:09 He stood in front of the gate and poured what appeared to be an accelerant over himself,

01:13 before setting himself on fire while shouting "Free Palestine".

01:18 Police officers responded quickly, dousing the flames with a fire extinguisher.

01:22 Bushnell was treated in hospital but couldn't survive his burns.

01:26 A recording of his live stream remained accessible on Twitch for several hours before it was

01:30 taken down and his channel suspended.

01:33 But the video is still being widely shared on other social media sites.

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