US military personnel, lady set selves on fire outside Israeli consulate to protest war on Gaza (Video)
A United States military personnel and a protester in Atlanta have set themselves on fire to protest against the ongoing war in Gaza.
Security authorities said the military personnel intentionally burnt himself outside the Israeli Embassy in Washington on Sunday afternoon.
He was later transported to an area hospital after the fire was put out by U.S. Secret Service officers, DC Fire and EMS posted online.
The man remains in critical condition, a Metropolitan Police Department spokesperson said Sunday afternoon.
An Air Force spokesperson confirmed that the incident involved an active-duty airman.
“I will no longer be complicit in genocide,” said the man, wearing military fatigues, in a video he broadcasted live over the internet and obtained by Neptune Prime.
“He then doused himself in a clear liquid and set himself on fire, screaming “Free Palestine.”
Local police and Secret Service are investigating the incident.
Israel’s embassy has been the target of continued protest against the war in Gaza. The war in Gaza has led to pro-Palestinian and pro-Israeli protests in the United States.
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The protests started after Oct. 7 when Hamas, the Palestinian group that rules Gaza, killed 1,200 Israelis and seized 253 hostages in a cross-border attack.
Since then, Israeli forces have waged a military campaign against the coastal enclave, laying much of it to waste, with nearly 30,000 people dead, according to Palestinian health officials.
In December, a protester set herself on fire outside the Israeli Consulate in Atlanta and was rushed to the hospital in a critical condition.
Atlanta Police Chief Darin Schierbaum said was “likely an extreme act of political protest.”
The incident also happened around noon outside the Consulate General of Israel. Police said investigators didn’t believe the incident had “any nexus to terrorism.”
A security guard at the midtown Atlanta building saw the protester outside around noon and tried to stop her, police and fire officials told reporters at a news conference. The security guard sustained burns on their leg and wrist.
A Palestinian flag that was part of the protest was recovered at the scene, and gasoline was used as an accelerant, the officials said.
The chief said staff inside the Israeli consulate were safe and did not appear to be in danger during the incident. The incident was contained to outside the building, and the chief said he was not aware of any effort to enter the building.
“The community is safe,” Schierbaum said. “This department is aware of the tensions that are present right now in the Jewish community and in the Muslim community, and we will continue to remain vigilant to ensure that everyone remains safe,” he said.
Watch video of the U.S active-duty airman setting himself on fire below;
https://youtu.be/vCoctLGmADM?si=Evqwgb9zJaKHuH8n
