Written in GLOBAL on February 28, 2024 · 9:00 p.m
US Air Force soldier Aaron Bushnell, who died last Sunday (25) at the age of 25 after burning himself outside the Israeli embassy in Washington in protest against the Palestinian genocide in Gaza, told a close friend the evening before the tragedy, who knew confidential information about the US actions in the Gaza tunnels. The revelation was made to the New York Post (NYP).
Bushnell served in the Air Force's Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance Wing, but also interacted with anarchist groups on the Internet. And in one of these interactions, he announced via the “LillyAnarKitty” profile that he would take an “extreme act” because he no longer wanted to be an accomplice to the Palestinian genocide.
In his conversation with his friend the night before, he said he had “secret clearance” to access military intelligence data. “He told me that we have troops in these Gaza tunnels who are US soldiers who are involved in the killings.” claimed the friend, whose ties to Bushnell were confirmed by the NYP to have existed since she was a teenager.
“Its actual job is to process intelligence data. Some of what he processed had to do with the conflict between Israel and Gaza. One of the things he told me was the US Army's involvement in his desk genocide in Palestine. He told me that we had troops on the ground, that they were there killing large numbers of Palestinians. There are a lot of things I don't know, but I can say there was something in his tone that made me think he said he was scared. I never heard that sound come out of him,” the friend said.
The NYP emphasized shortly after this statement that although Bushnell had stated that he had passed top secret information to his friend, there was no way to verify whether this was true. The newspaper understands that the White House itself has publicly stated several times that it will not station US troops in the Gaza Strip, and President Biden has stated that he hopes to negotiate a ceasefire this week.
US special forces were deployed to Israel on October 7, shortly after Hamas's AlAqsa operation, which killed Israeli citizens. According to another US newspaper, the New York Times, the role of the Yankee military there was to “identify hostages, including American hostages.”
In addition, the troops also supported the Israeli army in alleged operations to expel Hamas members from the Gaza tunnels. However, official documents do not provide precise information about the role of the armed forces. The Air Force confirmed Bushnell's position but did not provide information about his security clearance.
“Don’t support Hamas”
Buchnell's friend told the NYP that the soldier “does not support Hamas in any way” and said he was surprised by his old friend's statements since Bushnell had never violated his military duty before.
“He has had a security clearance for four years and, as far as I know, this was the only time he broke protocol and revealed information he should not have disclosed. He was scared,” the friend said.
The friend said he had no idea Bushnell, who he knew as a “devout Christian,” would commit suicide. Especially since the soldier had previously told him that he was against such a practice. “For Aaron to do what he did, there were things that undermined his prolife stance. When I heard what was happening, my first reaction was, 'This can't be real.' “Suicide is not something Aaron would do,” the friend said.
“I told him to follow his conscience, it had always led him in the right direction.” [o amigo não sabia dos planos de autoimolação]. Aaron was very analytical, he would have made such a decision after thinking about it for a long time. He presented himself outwardly as the calmest, most peaceful and welladjusted person you will ever meet. If you watch his video, you will see how calm, cool and collected he is and that is his normal personality,” he added.
Attention
A Forum is committed to being transparent with its readers, publishing cases of suicide, and warning about the need to seek help in situations that could lead to someone taking their own life.
If you have similar thoughts and need help or information, there are accessible ways to provide emotional and preventive suicide support. Check it out below:
- Life Valorization Center (CVV) 188 (toll free);
- CAPS and Basic Health Units (family health, health posts and centers);
- UPA 24H, SAMU 192, Emergency Room;
- Hospitals.