Anti-Israel protester lights himself on fire outside of White House, video shows
A protester tried to self immolate outside of the White House during an anti-Israel protest on Saturday evening, disturbing video shows.
The unidentified man can be see screaming in pain after he lit his left arm on fire in the middle of the street as shocked police officers and bystanders rush over to help, according to one clip.
He holds his left arm high in the air as its engulfed in flames as the crowd douses his arm with water and batters out the flames out with towels.
The man screams that he is a journalist as he’s restrained by DC Metropolitan police officers, another clip posted by Free Beacon reporter Jessica Costescu shows after the fire had been extinguished.
The left-sleve of his burnt shirt appears drenched in liquid and pink, superficial burns can be seen on his bare arm.
One passerby pours his bottle of water on the wound, according to the clip.
“We spread the misinformation,” he screams at one point in the video as a crowd gathers around him.
“I’m a journalist and I said it was okay,” he yells as a woman gives him a hug.
A white-shirt officer jumps into the scene and screams at onlookers to “back it up,” pushing some out of the way, the video shows.
The man lit himself on fire in the 800 block of 16th Street just outside of the White House around 5:45 p.m., according to the Washington DC Metropolitan Police.
DC Fire and EMS responded and transported the man to an area hospital with non-life threatening injuries, cops said.
“The District of Columbia has a long and proud history of peaceful first amendment activities and the Metropolitan Police Department handles hundreds of protests, demonstrations and other events every year,” the department said.
“We will continue to support those who choose to protest peaceful and safely, and we will continue to hold accountable those who commit criminal acts while in our city.”
Protesters descended on Washington DC around the White House on Saturday night ahead of the one-year anniversary of Oct. 7, when Hamas launched an attack on Israel killing some 1,200 people sparking the ongoing war in the region.
The protesters are demanding a ceasefire in the Gaza strip, where an estimated 40,000 Palestinians have been killed by the Israeli military in the past year.
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