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US Soldier Sets Himself on Fire outside Israeli Embassy in Washington to Protest Gaza War (www.news18.com)
submitted 2 years ago by to c/worldnews@lemmy.ml
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“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!”

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[–] 21 points 2 years ago (5 children)

Yes, my first thought was, "Crikey! Has anyone in the united states self -immolated, before?!"

It's a horrific way to call attention to a cause. I'm sure after his best possible recovery, his military unit will rally to prosecute to add to his anguish.

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  • [–] 9 points 2 years ago

    I'm sure after his best possible recovery

    I don’t think he’ll recover. (In fact, apparently it is already being reported that he died. But even if he hasn’t yet he will.) He was taking deep lungfuls of flame and smoke to continue his chant. He’ll have destroyed his lungs. He knew going in that he wouldn’t come out of this alive.

    What a brave man.

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  • [–] 7 points 2 years ago (1 child)

    @Maeve i
    He died. It's actually not as uncommon as you'd think.

    Quite a few US Americans in this list of political self immolations.

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  • [+] -42 points 2 years ago* (last edited 2 years ago) (1 child)
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  • [–] 22 points 2 years ago (1 child)

    The first case of an active duty serviceman self immolating in the US. Alice Herz was the first one in the US, but there have been a dozen or two since then.

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  • [+] 12 points 2 years ago* (last edited 2 years ago) (1 child)
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  • [–] 13 points 2 years ago (1 child)

    Right, which I confirmed. The person you replied to asked if it had ever happened in the US before, without specifying the military service. That’s why I clarified that this is not close to the first US self immolation generally (not even the first in response to the same thing), only for active service members.

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  • [–] 1 point 2 years ago

    That's right. It says a lot, either way and this thread makes me feel very sad. It says a lot, and not on the actors. It's rather too much to bang out on social media but it gives one a long pause for deep reflection. It feels about like one little old self confronting the collective unconscious again.

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