Washington, Feb 26: US Air Force soldier is in critical condition after he set himself on fire outside the Israeli Embassy in Washington, DC, Sunday. He live streamed the self-immolation action on Twitch where he captured himself standing outside the gates of the Israeli embassy and identifying himself as a member of the US Air Force.
“I will no longer be complicit in genocide [in Gaza]. I am about to engage in an extreme act of protest,” the man apparently said before setting himself alight and repeatedly shouting “Free Palestine!”
The man’s name was not shared publicly but according to the New York Times and the New York Post it matches a LinkedIn account for an active-duty Air Force officer from Texas. His identity is yet to be confirmed.
Law enforcement officers standing nearby responded by putting out the fire with three fire extinguishers. Law enforcement also drew a gun on the burning man during the incident, according to a report by Task and Purpose.
Authorities were heard asking the man – “May I help you, sir?” – at first but as soon as he was engulfed in flames they started yelling at him to get down on the ground. They even drew their guns on the burning man before someone pushed them to get fire extinguishers to extinguish the fire.
Twitch removed the troubling footage quickly as it violated the streaming app’s guidelines. The Air Force told US news media outlets it was unable to verify reports that the man was an active serviceman.–(News18)
