The Israeli army shot and killed Ayşenur Ezgi Eygi, a Turkish-American activist with the International Solidarity Movement (ISM), during a weekly demonstration in Beita, West Bank, on Friday 6 September.
Eygi, 26, was observing the protest alongside Palestinians praying when Israeli forces stationed on a hill fired tear gas and live ammunition. She was shot in the head and died shortly after being transported to a hospital in Nablus.
Mariam Dag, a fellow ISM volunteer who witnessed the incident, stated, “We were peacefully demonstrating against the colonisation of their land, and the illegal settlement of Evyatar. The situation escalated when the Israeli army began to fire tear gas and live ammunition, forcing us to retreat.”
The International Solidarity Movement condemned the killing, emphasising that Eygi was standing about 200 metres from the soldiers when she was shot. The organisation called for an independent investigation into what it described as an ‘intentional’ shooting.
Turkish officials, citing information from Palestinian authorities, suggested that Eygi may have been deliberately targeted by a sniper. They likened the incident to the 2022 killing of journalist Shireen Abu Akleh.
US President Joe Biden stated that he had discussed Eygi’s killing with his team, but that he didn’t have enough information at that moment to make a full assessment.
Eygi’s family called for an independent investigation, stating, “Given the circumstances of Aysenur’s killing, an Israeli investigation is not adequate.”
The Israeli military said it was examining the information about the foreign national’s death and the circumstances under which it had occurred.
Following Eygi’s death, Turkish officials, including President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, released statements condemning the incident and expressing condolences, which some may view as an attempt to co-opt Eygi’s legacy for political purposes. ISM members emphasise that Ayşenur Eygi was aligned with anti-colonial and anti-imperial struggles, suggesting she would oppose any state-led oppression, including that of Turkey.
Eygi’s death marks the 18th killing of a demonstrator in Beita since 2020. The village has been a focal point of resistance against Israeli occupation, particularly against illegal settlements like the Evyatar outpost, established on Palestinian land. The ISM, which provides a protective presence in the West Bank, said it would continue its solidarity work and called for an independent investigation into Eygi’s death, dismissing an Israeli inquiry as inadequate.
