US Killing ‘Large Numbers of Palestinians’
– What Did Aaron Bushnell Know?
The Palestine Chronicle Staff
“He told me on Saturday that we have
troops in those tunnels, that it’s
US soldiers participating in the killings,’’
Bushnell’s friend told the New York Post.
(February 28, 2024) — The young US soldier who set himself on fire outside the Israeli embassy in Washington DC on February 25 had direct knowledge of US fighters engaged in active combat in Gaza, the New York Post reported, citing a friend of Aaron Bushnell.
Bushnell, the US airman who served in the Air Force’s 70th Intelligence Surveillance and Reconnaissance Wing, was driven to the act as a desperate attempt to bring attention to the Israeli genocide in the Strip, according to his own last words.
His last words were: “I’m about to engage in an extreme act of protest but, compared to what people have been experiencing in Palestine at the hands of their colonizers, it’s not extreme at all. This is what our ruling class has decided will be normal”.
The Post, however, suggests that there is more to the story.
“He told me on Saturday that we have troops in those tunnels, that it’s US soldiers participating in the killings,’’ Bushnell’s unnamed friend told the Post, which indicated that it has verified the connection between the two.
What the Friend Said
These are excerpts from Bushnell’s friend’s statement to the Post:
“His actual job involves the processing of intelligence data. Some of what he was processing had to do with the Israeli Gaza conflict.
“One of the things he told me is that coming across his desk … was the US military was involved in the genocides going on in Palestine.
“There’s just too many things I don’t know, but I can tell you that the tone of his voice just had something in it that told me he was scared.
“I’ve never heard that tone come out of him.”
US Military in Gaza
Though the Biden Administration insisted that no US troops would be directly involved in the war on Gaza, media reports suggested that the US has some kind of direct military involvement in the Israeli war, which has led to the killing and wounding of over 100,000 civilians.
The Post cited an earlier New York Times report saying that US special operations forces have been deployed in Israel since Hamas’ October 7 to “identify hostages, including American hostages.”
“Special forces have also been on hand to assist with strategy for Israeli troops in Gaza, who are flushing out Hamas members from the network of tunnels under the territory,” according to the Post, which added that the NYT report had noted that US troops are “not assigned any combatant roles.”
Israel’s Genocide
The Israeli genocide in Gaza has ignited anger all over the world, not just against Israel, but also against the US and its western allies who either directly supported the war or did little to stop it.
Currently on trial before the International Court of Justice for genocide against Palestinians, Israel has been waging a devastating war on Gaza since October 7.
According to Gaza’s Ministry of Health, 29,954 Palestinians have been killed, and 70,325 wounded in Israel’s ongoing genocide in Gaza starting on October 7.
Moreover, at least 7,000 people are unaccounted for, presumed dead under the rubble of their homes throughout the Strip.
Palestinian and international organizations say that the majority of those killed and wounded are women and children.
The Israeli aggression has also resulted in the forceful displacement of nearly two million people from all over the Gaza Strip, with the vast majority of the displaced forced into the densely crowded southern city of Rafah near the border with Egypt — in what has become Palestine’s largest mass exodus since the 1948 Nakba.
Israel says that 1,200 soldiers and civilians were killed during the Al-Aqsa Flood Operation on October 7. Israeli media published reports suggesting that many Israelis were killed on that day by ‘friendly fire.’
‘Free Palestine!’ – Final Words of
US Soldier before Self-Immolation
(February 28, 2024) — An active-duty member of the US Air Force set himself on fire outside the Israeli Embassy in Washington, DC on Sunday in protest against Israel’s genocidal war on the besieged Gaza Strip. He later died of his injuries, according to reports.
“My name is Aaron Bushnell, I am an active-duty member of the United States Air Force and I will no longer be complicit in genocide,” the 25-year-old said before setting himself on fire.
“I’m about to engage in an extreme act of protest but, compared to what people have been experiencing in Palestine at the hands of their colonizers, it’s not extreme at all. This is what our ruling class has decided will be normal,” he continued.
The video shows Bushnell, dressed in his uniform, walking up to the embassy building, setting his phone down on the ground, and pouring a liquid over himself before setting himself alight. As flames engulf him, he repeatedly yells: “Free Palestine!”
Law enforcement officers are heard screaming in the background for Bushnell to get on the ground. As one officer sprays Bushnell with a fire extinguisher, another is seen pointing a gun at him as he collapses on the ground.
“I don’t need guns, I need fire extinguishers!” an officer is heard yelling, as other policemen arrive.
Final Facebook Message
Bushnell posted a message on Facebook, earlier in the day, alongside a link to a Twitch stream that has since been taken down.
He wrote: “Many of us like 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?’ The answer is, you’re doing it. Right now.”
The video has drawn a widespread response on social media with one user, journalist Sana Saeed, saying: “Aaron Bushnell’s name will live on as an example of moral defiance & protest against a regime of genocide. He gave up his life for something bigger than himself, against his own uniform. The walls are rotting, people are suffocating & this govt & its institutions refuse to care.”
Another says the US serviceman “made the ultimate sacrifice for humankind. My heart goes out to his family.”
A spokesperson for the US Air Force reportedly confirmed to CNN that “an active duty Airman was involved in today’s incident.”
Close to 30,000 Killed
Bushnell’s final act of protest comes as Israel’s genocidal war on the Gaza Strip kills close to 30,000 Palestinians, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry. In addition, 70,043 have been wounded in the onslaught starting on October 7.
Moreover, at least 7,000 people are unaccounted for, presumed dead under the rubble of their homes throughout the Gaza Strip.
Palestinian and international organizations say that the majority of those killed and wounded are women and children.
The Israeli aggression has also resulted in the forceful displacement of nearly two million people from all over Gaza, with the vast majority of the displaced forced into the densely crowded southern city of Rafah near the border with Egypt – in what has become Palestine’s largest mass exodus since the 1948 Nakba.
Israel is currently on a trial before the International Court of Justice accused of contravening the Genocide Convention in its assault on the Palestinian enclave.
Posted in accordance with Title 17, Section 107, US Code, for noncommercial, educational purposes.
