Who was Air Force engineer Aaron Bushnell?
The Air Force officer who set himself on hearth exterior the Israeli embassy in DC in protest of the battle in Gaza was an ‘aspiring engineer’ and searching for to ‘transition out of the army’.
Aaron Bushnell, 25, was hospitalized in important situation on Sunday after he doused himself in accelerant and struck a lighter, inflicting his physique to turn into consumed by flames. DC Fire and EMS stated he sustained ‘life-threatening accidents’.
Horrific video of the incident confirmed Bushnell explaining the explanations for his ‘excessive act of protest’ whereas he walked as much as the constructing and screamed ‘Free Palestine’ – as his physique went up in flames. The hearth burned for greater than a minute earlier than police and safety workers managed to extinguish it.
The active-duty airman is a DevOps engineer based mostly in San Antonio, Texas, based on his LinkedIn profile. He touted himself having ‘superb communication abilities’ and ‘thriving in workforce environments’.
Bushnell is pursuing his bachelor’s diploma in laptop software program engineering from Southern New Hampshire University and is CompTIA Security+ licensed, a credential that signifies he has the baseline abilities to carry out core safety capabilities and pursue an IT safety profession.
He has obvious hyperlinks to not less than two anarchist teams, Burning River Anarchist Collective and Mutual Aid Street Solidarity – each of that are based mostly in Ohio. Bushnell adopted each teams on Facebook.
He was seemingly raised in a religious Christian household and even labored for Paraclete Press, a Christian ebook and music writer based mostly in Massachusetts the place his mom is seemingly employed. His father owns a building firm.
During his youth, Bushnell additionally carried out in a neighborhood indoor marching band known as Spirit Winter Percussion.
The airman declared he would ‘not be complicit in genocide’ as he set himself alight and livestreamed the horrific scene earlier than being taken to hospital in a important situation
Bushnell is a DevOps engineer based mostly in San Antonio, Texas, based on his LinkedIn profile
Video reveals how Bushnell approached the heavily-guarded Israeli embassy on DC’s International Drive simply earlier than 1pm on Sunday. He was in fight uniform and talking right into a digital camera on a selfie-stick.
‘My identify is Aaron Bushnell,’ he instructed the digital camera, ‘I’m an energetic responsibility member of the United States Air Force and I’ll not be complicit in genocide.
‘I’m about to have interaction in an excessive act of protest, however in comparison with what folks have been experiencing in Palestine by the hands of their colonizers, it isn’t excessive in any respect.
‘This is what our ruling class has determined can be regular.’
For greater than 30 seconds he walked on silently, passing the neighboring Chinese embassy and holding an open flask of liquid in his left hand.
As he reached the embassy, he positioned the digital camera on the bottom and marched to the gate, showering himself within the fluid earlier than putting his service cap on his head.
Tossing the flask away, Bushnell struggled to ignite his lighter as a voice is heard difficult him.
His digital camera recorded an unseen man asking ‘Hi sir, can I provide help to?’ as he approached the embassy gates.
Twelve seconds later the voice is heard asking once more ‘Can I provide help to, sir?’ earlier than Bushnell struck a lighter and ignited the fluid.
Dailymail.com has chosen to not present the next footage which recorded Bushnell being consumed by flames for greater than a minute earlier than police and safety workers managed to extinguish them.
The video reveals the flames spreading throughout his physique, engulfing his head as he continues to scream ‘Free Palestine’, his voice cracking in agony because the flames intensify. He managed to face for nearly a minute earlier than falling to the bottom.
Sirens have been already wailing within the background and a person in plain garments pointed a pistol at him as others doused him with hearth extinguishers.
He was taken to hospital by DC Fire and EMS with ‘important and life-threatening accidents’.
Sunday morning, earlier than he headed to the embassy, Bushnell seemingly promoted his act of protest on Facebook, sharing a hyperlink to his LillyAnarKitty twitch account, the place he live-streamed the demonstration.
‘Many of us wish 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?”‘ Bushnell wrote. ‘The reply is, you are doing it. Right now.’
The video was solely seen by a number of dozen folks on Twitch earlier than it was eliminated by the platform, nevertheless it has since been considered by over a million folks on X.
A buddy described Bushnell as ‘the kindest, gentlest, silliest little child within the Air Force’
The Secret Service stated it acquired a report that a person ‘was experiencing a attainable medical/psychological well being emergency’ exterior the Israeli embassy
The airman was taken to the hospital by DC Fire and EMS with life-threatening accidents
Authorities responded to the embassy’s alert at round 1pm on Sunday and located the person with extreme burns
‘No embassy workers have been injured and all are secure’ a spokesman for the embassy stated
The embassy is on International Drive in Washington’s North Cleveland Park neighborhood
Bushnell’s LinkedIn web page describes him as an ‘aspiring software program engineer with academic and work expertise in software program growth and Linux system administration, in search of SkillBridge applications to transition out of the US Air Force into software program engineering’.
A spokesperson for the US Air Force confirmed Bushnell is an active-duty airman.
A spokesperson from the Secret Service instructed DailyMail.com: ‘The US Secret Service, Uniformed Division responded to the 3400 Block of International Drive, NW, DC concerning a person that was experiencing a attainable medical / psychological well being emergency.’
The Metropolitan Police Department’s Explosive Ordnance Disposal was known as to the scene in reference to a suspicious automobile that could be related to the individual.
The Israeli embassy launched an announcement after the incident, studying: ‘On Sunday, 2/25, at round 1 PM, a person set himself on hearth exterior the Israeli Embassy in Washington and was taken to the hospital by ambulance.
‘No Embassy workers have been injured and are secure.’
The same incident occurred in December when a pro-Palestine protestor set themselves ablaze exterior the Israeli consulate in Atlanta.
The metropolis’s police chief, Darin Schierbaum, described the incident as an ‘excessive act of political protest,’ and stated a Palestinian flag was recovered from the scene.
At least two folks have been injured within the act of self-immolation, together with a safety guard who tried to intervene.
Bushnell’s protest got here because the White House faces rising strain over the four-and-a-half month outdated battle which has claimed greater than 30,000 lives.
The president faces a Democrat main in Michigan on Tuesday the place the state’s massive Arab-American inhabitants is being urged to vote ‘uncommitted’.
Democrat ‘Squad’ member Rep Rashida Tlaib of Michigan and former Jewish Rep Andy Levin are amongst those that have endorsed the ‘Listen to Michigan’ marketing campaign.
‘Biden’s blockade of the cease-fire decision will solely intensify the outrage and impress pro-peace voices to vote ‘uncommitted’ to make their voices heard,’ stated marketing campaign chief Joseph Geevarghese.
Dearborn’s Democrat Mayor Abdullah Hammoud warned this week Biden may not take the Arab vote as a right.
‘My biggest concern is that Mr Biden won’t be remembered because the president who saved American democracy in 2020 however slightly because the president who sacrificed it for Benjamin Netanyahu in 2024,’ he stated.
President Biden, seen at a White House a black-tie dinner on Saturday, is going through rising strain from his personal get together to reign in Israel’s army assault on Gaza
The president faces a Democrat main in Michigan on Tuesday the place the state’s massive Arab-American inhabitants is being urged to vote ‘uncommitted’
Hundreds of individuals continued to stream in the direction of Gaza’s southern border amid the smoke from air-strikes on Sunday as Israel prepares for its assault on Rafah
Thousands extra waited for support amid chaotic scenes on a beachfront in Gaza City
Last week Biden’s Democrat challenger Rep Dean Phillips stated he was ‘sickened’ by the lack of life in Gaza, and would unilaterally acknowledge a Palestinian state if elected president.
‘This is essentially the most heartbreaking, horrifying, disgusting visuals I’ve ever seen in my life,’ the candidate who’s himself Jewish stated.
The White House on Friday declared Israeli plans to to assemble one other 3,000 properties within the West Bank ‘inconsistent with worldwide regulation’.
And sanctions have been imposed on a handful of Israeli settlers accused of attacking Palestinians within the occupied territory.
‘This is like exhibiting as much as a five-alarm hearth with a cup of water whereas giving gasoline to the arsonist,’ stated Yousef Munayyer of the Palestine-Israel program on the Arab Center in DC.
