A group of Native Americans in New Mexico have set fire to an effigy of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu controlling US President Joe Biden, who is portrayed as a stringed puppet.

Each year, on the last Sunday of October, local middle school-aged children in the South Valley of Albuquerque are invited to design a mythical “bogeyman” representing the community’s collective fears and worries.

Burning of Kookooee (Credit: Instagram/eubenhemmer)

The design is then reproduced in a larger size and set alight by the community amidst Aztec-inspired fire dancers and belly dancers in a ceremony known as the burning of El Kookooee, which has taken place annually in the area since 1989.

In the past, the effigy has reportedly been of former President Donald Trump and an ICE (US Immigration and Customs Enforcement) official, amongst others.

Burning of Kookooee (Credit: Instagram/eubenhemmer)

This year’s effigy also included the logo of the American Israeli Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC), an American pro-Israel lobbying group.

The base of the effigy base read: “AIPAC. Buying US politicians & judges since 1954”.

After several weeks of work by local artists to create the large figure based on the children’s designs, attendees of the event write down their fears for the future on slips of paper and stuff the notes into the boogeyman before it is set ablaze.

Attendees watch and cheer as the effigy burns, supposedly carrying their fears into the evening sky.

The burning of El Kookoee is the culmination of the Festival of de Otoño in this Latino neighbourhood, which is reportedly intended to help maintain the cultural heritage of Hispanics in the area.