Self-immolation as political protest: a brief modern history

WARNING: This story contains details and discussion about suicide. 

Vigils have been held since the weekend for a U.S. soldier who died after setting himself on fire in front of the Israeli Embassy in Washington, D.C., in an act of apparent protest over the war in Gaza.

Washington’s Metropolitan Police Department identified the deceased as Aaron Bushnell, of San Antonio, Texas, a 25-year-old active duty member of the U.S. Air Force. The New York Times reported the incident on Sunday was broadcast live over the internet.

“I will no longer be complicit in genocide,” Bushnell apparently said before dousing himself in a clear liquid and setting