US airman who set himself on fire protesting Israel dies

WASHINGTON: A US Air Force airman who set himself on fire outside the Israeli Embassy in Washington in an apparent act of protest against the war in Gaza has died, the military and local police said.

Senior Airman Aaron Bushnell, 25, a cyber defense operations specialist with the 531st Intelligence Support Squadron, died from injuries sustained in the incident, the Air Force said in a statement on Monday.

“When a tragedy like this occurs, every member of the Air Force feels it,” US Air Force Colonel Celina Noyes said in the statement. “We extend our deepest sympathies to the family and friends of Senior Airman Bushnell. Our thoughts and prayers are with them, and we ask that you respect their privacy during this difficult time.”

Officer Lee Lepe, a spokesperson for the District of Columbia Metropolitan Police Department, confirmed the death.

The Pentagon said the death was a “tragic event” and that they were following the situation.

Bushnell was initially hospitalised in critical condition after US Secret Service officers put out the flames on Sunday, DC Fire and EMS said earlier.

Bushnell, wearing military fatigues, broadcast the incident live over the Internet.

“I will no longer be complicit in genocide,” the man said before dousing himself in a clear liquid and setting himself on fire, screaming “Free Palestine”.

“We express our heartfelt condolences and full solidarity with the family and friends of the American pilot Aaron Bushnell, who immortalised his name as a defender of human values and the plight of the Palestinian people, who are oppressed by the American administration and its unjust policies,” Hamas said in a post on Telegram.