An active duty U.S. Air Force member who set himself on fire this weekend outside the Israeli Embassy in Washington, D.C., declaring "Free Palestine" as he did so, has captured global attention.
A video showed Aaron Bushnell, 25, walk up to the driveway of the Israeli embassy, set his phone down on the ground and pour an unknown liquid from a bottle over himself and ignite it while yelling "Free Palestine" repeatedly.
Among the commentary that followed, several social media users highlighted posts that seemed to show Israeli security service Mossad mocking the airman.
The Claim
A post on X, formerly Twitter, by rapper Lowkey, posted on February 26, 2024, showed a screengrab from an account called "Mossad Commentary" with the message "Our enemies kill themselves." Lowkey wrote "The account of Israel's external intelligence agency mocked the death of US soldier Aaron Bushnell as he self-immolated and cried "Free Palestine" outside the Israeli embassy in Washington."
Former Utah senatorial candidate Sam Parker posted the screengrab and wrote "'Our Greatest Ally' everybody. They see US servicemen—literally their allies—as the enemy. You think @BenShapiro, @Libsoftiktok, or @EndWokeness will condemn this response by the Mossad? Still want to go k*ll and di for Israel? RIP Aaron Bushnell, Free Palestine."
Dr. Anastasia Maria Loupis posted the same image, writing: "Why did @MOSSADil delete this tweet calling a US soldier their enemy?"
Conspiracy theorist Stew Peters wrote: "BREAKING: Mossad labels United States Air Force an ENEMY to the state of @Israel"
MMA fighter and conservative Jake Shields posted: "Here is a deleted post, Mossad is calling a US soldier their emeny [sic]
"The US currently at war with 4 countries to support their genocide."
The Facts
Little information from official sources has been published about Bushnell since the incident. A U.S. Air Force spokesperson confirmed to Newsweek that an active-duty airman was involved in the incident.
Journalist Talia Jane, who claims to have spoken to Bushnell's "loved ones", said he succumbed to his injuries. A spokesperson for the Metropolitan Police Department of the District of Columbia confirmed his death.
"On February 25, 2024, at approximately 1:00 p.m., the Metropolitan Police Department responded to the 3500 block of International Drive, NW, to assist the United States Secret Service after a man set himself on fire in front of an embassy," the MPD spokesperson told Newsweek.
"He was transported by DC Fire and EMS to a local hospital where he later died.
"MPD is working with the USSS and ATF to investigate the incident. The man has been identified as 25-year-old Aaron Bushnell, of San Antonio, TX."
Newsweek has contacted the U.S. Air Force via an online form for further comment.
The posts quoted on social media were not from Mossad.
The post, shared by Lowkey, Sam Parker, and others, which has been deleted, was from @MOSSADil, an unaffiliated account.
The only Twitter account affiliated with Mossad, linked via the Mossad website, is mossad_career, which describes itself as "Official twitter account of the Mossad—the Israeli Secret Intelligence Service." It has not posted since September 20, 2020.
The fake account, @MOSSADil, has shared multiple misleading and inaccurate news throughout the recent conflict in Gaza, as investigated by Snopes, euronews, and the BBC, among others.
The account has made other inflammatory comments about Bushnell, calling him an "idiot" in one post.
Newsweek has contacted a media representative for the Israeli Ministry of Defense for comment.
If you or someone you know is considering suicide, please contact the 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline by dialing 988, text "988" to the Crisis Text Line at 741741 or go to 988lifeline.org.
The Ruling
False.
The Israeli secret service agency, Mossad, did not publish a social media post celebrating the U.S. airman Aaron Bushnell setting himself on fire outside the U.S. embassy.
The post came from a bogus Mossad account which has published misleading and bogus content throughout the conflict between Israel and Hamas.
FACT CHECK BY Newsweek's Fact Check team
Update 02/26/2024, 9.00 a.m. ET: This article was updated with comment from the Metropolitan Police Department of the District of Columbia.
Uncommon Knowledge
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