Questions grow after Turkish-American activist killed by Israeli troops

Israel claims it was an accident amid a riot, but witnesses tell a different story.

The body of 26-year-old Aysenur Ezgi Eygi has been repatriated to Turkey, where he will be buried in his hometown of Didim.

The Turkish-American activist was killed by Israeli troops on Friday during a protest against illegal Israeli settlements. Israel has said Aysenur’s death was accidental, occurring during a demonstration in Beita, near Nablus in the occupied West Bank, but there is mounting evidence to contradict this, with witnesses claiming Israeli soldiers deliberately targeted her.

After a preliminary investigation, the Israeli military stated that it was “highly likely that [ela] was hit” by his soldiers, stating that the shot was “indirect and unintentional.”

Who was Aysenur?
Aysenur was a member of the International Solidarity Movement (ISM), a group that has been protesting against Israel’s occupation of Palestine and its treatment of Palestinians for years. She arrived in the occupied West Bank just days before her death for training with other volunteers, and was assigned to a protest alongside Palestinian, Israeli and international activists.

Her friends describe her as a warm-hearted woman with high aspirations, including studying law. From an early age, Aysenur believed it was important to protest for the rights of oppressed people.

What happened that day?
On Friday, September 6, the group held their noontime community prayers. Shortly afterward, Israeli soldiers surrounded the protesters and began shooting and tear gas, while the protesters responded with rocks. Aysenur and other volunteers retreated about 200 meters down the hill, seeking shelter.

Witnesses reported that while they were hiding, four Israeli soldiers positioned themselves on the roof of a local house, watching the protesters. About 20 minutes later, two shots rang out. Aysenur was hit and found face down, shot in the head.

A Palestinian youth, about 17 years old, was about 60 feet away from Aysenur and was wounded by the second bullet, which ricocheted off his leg. “I found her lying on the ground… bleeding from the head,” said activist Jonathan Pollak, who found Aysenur.

At 1:49 p.m., video shows Aysenur surrounded by paramedics before being loaded into an ambulance, but she was pronounced dead shortly after.

What did the witnesses say?
None of the activists interviewed reported a riot, and images of the protest also did not show violence by protesters. An ISM statement refuted Israeli claims that there had been physical disturbances before Aysenur’s death. Activist Mariam Dag, using a pseudonym, said: “We were peacefully protesting against the colonization of Palestinian lands and the illegal settlement of Evyatar.”

Another activist, using the pseudonym Mariam, said she was about 10 to 20 meters away from Aysenur at the time of the shooting and that the army was clearly visible, positioned on a street and on a rooftop. “It was a deliberate shot to kill, to her head,” Mariam said.

What did Israel say?
Four days after Aysenur’s death, the Israeli military said she was killed during an attempt by its soldiers to quell a riot. The statement said it was “highly likely that she was hit indirectly and unintentionally” by gunfire aimed at “the main instigator of the riot.”

Israel has yet to present evidence to support its claims.

What did the Turkish government say?
Turkey has launched an investigation into Aysenur’s murder and said it would seek international arrest warrants for those responsible. Turkey’s foreign ministry said Aysenur was “deliberately targeted and killed by Israeli soldiers during a peaceful demonstration.”

What did the US government say?
The United States has said it is “deeply disturbed” by the death of Aysenur, a US citizen. However, it has decided not to conduct its own investigation, as requested by Aysenur’s parents, and has called on Israel to investigate the shooting by its own soldiers.

With information from Al Jazeera and news agencies.