A protester attempted self-immolation in front of the White House during a pro-Palestinian demonstration.
Samuel Mena Jr. was seen trying to set himself on fire in Lafayette Park, where a large number of protesters gathered Saturday.
Photos taken at the scene by the White House capture the heartbreaking moment Mena’s arm caught fire.
Mena, who claims to be a “visual storyteller”, was seen waving his burning arm in the air while screaming in pain.
A protester attempted self-immolation in front of the White House during a pro-Palestinian demonstration.
Samuel Mena Jr. tried to set himself on fire on Saturday in Lafayette Park, where a large number of people were gathered.
In the images, police officers are seen approaching cautiously while trying to help him.
Shortly after Mena set his arm on fire, passersby rushed to pour water on it to put out the flames.
A video recorded after putting out the fire shows Mena standing in the middle of a group of police officers.
His arm is white and appears to be badly burned.
The journalist can be seen waving his burning arm in the air as he screams in pain. In the images, police officers cautiously approach Mena.
Shortly after Mena set his arm on fire, bystanders allegedly rushed to pour water on him to extinguish the flames.
Amid chilling screams of pain, Mena shouted about “misinformation.”
“I’m a journalist and I said it was fine,” he lamented.
Towards the end of the video, which was recorded by Jessica Costescu, a passerby runs up to Mena and pours some water on her burned arm.
A moment later, a police officer pushes him out of the way and yells “back up!”
The shocking act comes just days before the one-year anniversary of Hamas’ savage surprise attack on Israel, which left 1,200 dead and precipitated an all-out war in Gaza. The war has killed more than 41,000 Palestinians.