Israel Military States US-Turkish Woman Likely Shot Indirectly During West Bank Protest
The Israeli military has reported that a US-Turkish woman, Aysenur Ezgi Eygi, who was shot dead during a protest in the occupied West Bank last week, was "highly likely hit indirectly and unintentionally" by its soldiers. Eygi, 26, was participating in a demonstration against Jewish settlement expansion in Beita when she was struck by gunfire from Israeli forces.
The US government has condemned the killing as "unprovoked and unjustified." Eygi’s family, alongside the United Nations human rights office, is demanding a thorough and independent investigation into the circumstances surrounding her death.
In a brief statement, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) indicated that the shots fired were not aimed at Eygi but rather at what they described as "the key instigator of the riot." The IDF expressed its "deepest regret" over Eygi’s death, yet the response from the United States was one of sharp criticism. Secretary of State Antony Blinken emphasized the need for Israeli forces to implement fundamental changes in their operations in the West Bank, including revising their rules of engagement.
According to Blinken, eyewitness accounts support claims that Eygi was peacefully protesting, making her death "unprovoked and unjustified." He stated, "No-one should be shot and killed for attending a protest; no one should have to risk their life just to express their views."
Eygi had recently arrived in the West Bank as a volunteer shortly before her tragic death. Her family has described her life as having been "taken needlessly, unlawfully, and violently by the Israeli military."
Following her death, her family released a statement asserting that Eygi was peacefully advocating for justice when she was fatally shot by Israeli military gunfire. Both US and Turkish authorities have condemned the incident, with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan calling the killing "barbaric."
The IDF characterized the scene as occurring during a "violent riot" in which Palestinian demonstrators were reportedly throwing rocks and burning tires. However, the protest group Eygi was with has refuted claims of violent behavior, insisting their demonstration was peaceful. Other witnesses have corroborated that while some clashes took place nearby, Eygi was not involved in these hostilities when she was shot.
Jonathan Pollak, an Israeli activist present at the demonstration, described hearing gunshots and affirmed that no stone-throwing occurred where Eygi was located. Eygi was attending her first protest in the West Bank with the International Solidarity Movement, an organization involved in weekly demonstrations against Israeli settlements.
Since the 1967 Middle East war, Israel has established around 160 settlements in the West Bank and East Jerusalem, housing approximately 700,000 Jews. The international community broadly views these settlements as illegal under international law, although Israel contests this classification.
