A man was in critical condition after setting himself on fire outside the Israeli embassy in Washington, D.C., authorities said Sunday.
The Metropolitan Police Department said they responded to the incident on International Drive around 1 p.m. to assist the Secret Service. Fire and Emergency Services said the man suffered severe burns.
“An adult male was transported by DC Fire Department and EMS [Emergency Medical Services] They were taken to a local hospital and are listed in critical condition, the police department said. Say on Twitter/X.
According to the Washington Post, multiple officials said a video posted online showed a uniformed man shouting “Free Palestine” while being burned and claiming to be an active-duty member of the U.S. Air Force. It seems to be the man in the incident. An Air Force spokesperson told The Washington Post that they have not identified the man, who reportedly started the fire for about a minute before law enforcement put it out.
Police said an explosive ordnance disposal unit was also sent to the scene to deal with suspicious vehicles that may be linked to the man. Later it was stated that no harmful substances were found.
The Israeli embassy said its staff were not injured.
The embassy has been the focus of protests by pro-Palestinian demonstrators who have called for a ceasefire in Israel’s military offensive in Gaza, which could see the death toll exceed 30,000 this week.
Since October, Israeli airstrikes have killed 29,692 Palestinians in Gaza, two-thirds of them women and children, and injured 69,879 others, according to Gaza health authorities. The offensive follows a Hamas cross-border attack in Israel on October 7 that killed about 1,200 people and took more than 200 hostage.
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In another incident in December outside the Israeli consulate in Atlanta, a protester set himself on fire. Protesters and a guard were hospitalized with burns.
