The shock and awe of US Airman Aaron Bushnell’s self-immolation at the front of the Embassy Of Israel in Washington, DC has made the 25 year-old’s suicide seemingly impossible to reconcile for his friends, family, and any on-lookers who witnessed his fiery death. Bushnell’s obvious motive was his opposition to the war Israel has waged in Gaza which has seen the Jewish state chastised the world over for its indiscriminate killing of civilians and the consequent lambasting of the United States for continually blocking measures to implement a ceasefire at the UN Security Council. Although his cries to “free Palestine” made during his self-immolation made his motives clear, the depths to which he claimed to know about the conflict in Gaza convey that the Biden administration has misled the American public regarding its role in Israel’s war against Hamas.
According to one friend, Bushnell stated that the US’ involvement in Israel’s war effort went far beyond diplomacy and foreign aid. That friend stated that Bushnell told him that US soldiers are actively deployed in Israel, participating in the warfare eviscerating the Gaza Strip.
Bushnell was serving in the Air Force’s 70th Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance Wing at the time of his suicide. He told the friend his position in that division gave him top-secret clearance to military military intelligence which confirmed to him that US troops had been deployed to aid the IDF in its war against Hamas. “He told me on Saturday that we have troops in those tunnels, that it’s US soldiers participating in the killings,’’ said the friend who the New York Post confirmed was close to Bushnell. “He told me that we had troops on the ground, you know, that were there and were killing large numbers of Palestinians.”
A report made by the New York Times has stated that US special forces have indeed been deployed to Israel since October 7th. Shortly after Hamas’ attacks, the White House scrambled to delete a photo it posted of President Biden greeting a Delta Force Unit in Israel.
Despite speculation surrounding the context of that photo in consideration of Bushell’s claims, any intelligence he may have divulged to his friend would be impossible to substantiate at this time given its confidentiality. Throughout the course of the Israel – Hamas War President Joe Biden has stated that US troops will not be sent to aid in the conflict, although the US Navy has strategically re-positioned itself toward the Israeli and Gaza coast in the Mediterranean. Instead, the Biden Administration has cemented its foreign policy on Israel around a massive joint aid package with Ukraine which would see the Jewish state receive $14.1 billion. $2.5 billion of that military aid to Israel would be dedicated to US military operations in the region, alluding to more involvement in the conflict that the Biden administration has been transparent about.
The lack of corroborating evidence supporting Bushnell’s alleged claims has made the prevailing sentiment surrounding the suicide that he, like many other active servicemen and veterans, was suffering from mental illness which led to his suicide. Given his pro-Palestine position, reaction to the suicide has been polarizing. While many have championed Bushnell for bringing attention to the rampant human rights abuses in Gaza, Zionist supporters have come to ridicule the deceased Air Force veteran for his message, disregarding concerns over war crimes in Gaza and Bushnell and other veterans mental health in lieu of using his suicide as another opportunity to express their sycophancy for Israel.
The fraught nature of the cultural division existing in American society so deeply that is permeates to the most minuscule of acts was further exemplified by the response of the African American community to remembrances offered to Bushnell. Sympathy for his death was expressed by many across X, wishing that Bushnell would “Rest In Power.” However, the use of that phrase sparked outrage across BLM-aligned accounts who claimed “Rest In Power” was exclusively reserved as a condolence for black people.
The volatile reaction to Aaron Bushnell’s suicide and claims that the US military is emblematic of the upheaval in American society that the Biden administration’s entanglement in conflicts abroad has caused. As its maligned foreign policy continues to damage geopolitical stability in Europe and the Middle East, its ramifications have come to further resonate domestically, highlighting the social division that is sure to rear its ugly head as Biden’s bid for re-election inches closer.