Jerusalem – Israeli Protester Sets Himself On Fire At Rally

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    - People try to extinguish flame after a man set himself on fire during a protest in Tel Aviv, Israel, Saturday, July 14, 2012. A few thousand Israelis rallied  to mark a year since a wave of economic protests swept the country to protest the high cost of living and other social issues. (AP PHoto/Ben Kelmer)Jerusalem – An Israeli protester set himself alight during a rally Saturday night marking the anniversary of a wave of demonstrations that swept the country to protest the high cost of living and other social issues, authorities said.

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    Police spokesman Micky Rosenfeld said the man in his 40s poured flammable liquid over himself at a protest in Tel Aviv and set himself on fire. He was later rushed to a hospital where he is being treated for serious burns, Rosenfeld said.

    Israel’s Channel 10 TV showed footage of the man on fire. People crowded around, trying to put out the flames with shirts and water. People could be heard shouting “medic” and “bring water quickly.”

    Cases of self-immolation as a form of protest are rare in Israel, and it was not immediately clear what prompted the man to set himself alight.

    In 2005, a woman died of burns sustained after she set herself on fire to protest Israel’s withdrawal from the Gaza Strip when the government evicted thousands of Israelis from their homes there.

    Outside of Israel, the most famous recent case of self-immolation took place in Tunisia, where fruit-seller Mohammed Bouazizi set himself on fire in December 2010, helping set off the country’s uprising — and with it, the Arab Spring.

    Saturday’s rally in Tel Aviv took place at the same time as one in Jerusalem. Some of the few thousand people who turned out carried signs reading “social justice for everybody” and “stop exploiting us.”

    Saturday’s demonstrations were part of an effort to reenergize a protest movement began last July with complaints about housing prices but quickly shifted to a wide range of social economic issues like high food costs, low wages and better education. Hundreds of thousands of people marched in the demonstrations last year, and protest camps sprouted up in city centers across the country.

    About half a million Israelis took to the streets when the protest movement peaked last year. Demonstrations dwindled out soon after the government set up a committee it said would provide solutions to the wide array of social issues plaguing Israelis.

    Protest leader Daphni Leef said Saturday that little has changed since then.


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    17 Comments
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    Member
    11 years ago

    Self Immolation is the answer to the weed that grows in your own broken mind. Get rid of your injury to your own ego and grow up and be a man or woman and be active. You can not burn down the future.

    11 years ago

    In 1963, the Buddhist Monks in Vietnam, used to engage in self immolation to protest their government. However, I never thought that it would take place in EY.

    11 years ago

    The name Daphni just sounds like it bleeds liberal lets blame everyone else for our issues and force everyone else to help us while we sit and wait.

    Yaakov2
    Yaakov2
    11 years ago

    Mental illness has no boarders and there are as many Meshugaim per capita in EY as there are in any other country.

    Most Meshugaim are not only Meshuga but also plain stupid too and as such, most people who attempt to kill themselves can’t even succeed at that either because they don’t even know how to do it properly and intelligently.

    The point is that Meshugaim need ideas of how to perform foolish acts of killing themselves, because they can’t figure it out on their own and every time the read the news of anyone who tried something foolish like the type of foolishness they were trying, they suddenly get new idea of trying the same thing too.

    That’s why in NY it’s a matter of policy to very rarely report anyone jumping on the tracks. Although it happens a lot, every week it’s rarely reported because it would give ideas top other Meshugaim to try the same Meshugaas.

    Mark Levin
    Mark Levin
    11 years ago

    They should have let him toast totally!

    11 years ago

    May Hashem send everyone a refuat hanefesh and refuat haguf.

    HaNavon
    HaNavon
    11 years ago

    They shouldn’t have saved him.

    Now he’s going to be in need of social welfare for life. He’ll never get married. No one will want to look at him. He’s probably going to cost the system millions during his life time.
    I say, if someone wants to die, don’t save him. B’frat if he’s a m’chalel shabbos. There’s no chiuv. Assur l’racheim alav!

    Avreich1
    Avreich1
    11 years ago

    As they always do in instances such as these always bring out the worst possible feelings in VIN commentators. You never fail not to surprise me with your collective lack of compassion and sympathy.

    Just as long as tragedies such as the instance described above do not happen to you, or to anyone close to you c”v all you can do is to mock.

    Crusty
    Crusty
    11 years ago

    The monks who burned themselves in Vietnam are credited with uniting the Buddhists. Today they are considered heroes in Vietnam.

    HaNavon
    HaNavon
    11 years ago

    13,14

    Chazal say that it’s forbidden to have rachmanus on people who do damaging things to themselves.
    I’m just quoting them. If you don’t like it, take it up with them, not me. I would normally say that you should have rachmanus on him, but I don’t just argue with chazal…

    HaNavon
    HaNavon
    11 years ago

    16
    It’s in Sanhedrin, 92a

    Why don’t you go read something before you write anything.