A vigil at the US Army Recruiting Office for US Airman Aaron Bushnell in New York City. — AFP
AMID widespread, near-daily protests in the United States demanding a ceasefire in Israel’s attacks on Palestine, an active-duty member of the US Air Force set himself on fire outside the Israeli embassy in Washington, DC on Feb 25, and died. The man, identifying himself as Aaron Bushnell, said, “I will no longer be complicit in genocide,” in a video.
His words are significant; an active-duty member in the US Air Force knows far more than an ordinary protester. Before lighting himself on fire, Bushnell said that what he was about to do was minimal compared to the suffering of Palestinians. Bushnell yelled “Free Palestine” repeatedly, till he collapsed.
