US Secretary of State Antony Blinken has said that Israel’s killing of Turkish American activist Aysenur Ezgi Eygi in the occupied West Bank is both "unprovoked and unjustified," saying that it is "unacceptable."
"No one, no one should be shot and killed for attending a protest," Blinken said on Tuesday at a joint news conference with UK Foreign Secretary David Lammy, mentioning that Eygi is the second American citizen killed at the hands of Israeli security forces.
"In our judgement, Israeli security forces need to make some fundamental changes in the way that they operate in the West Bank, including changes to their rules of engagement," he told reporters.
Eygi, 26, a dual US and Turkish national, was fatally shot by Israeli forces last Friday during a protest against illegal Israeli settlements in Beita, a town just outside the city of Nablus.
Peaceful anti-settlement protest
Witnesses reported that Israeli soldiers opened live fire on demonstrators. Though she was standing away from the main protest area, she was fatally shot in the head. Despite being rushed to a hospital, medical workers were unable to save her.
The United Nations said Eygi had been taking part in a "peaceful anti-settlement protest" in Beita, scene of weekly demonstrations. Illegal Israeli settlers have for months tried to force Palestinians out of their homes in the occupied West Bank.
Eygi, born in Antalya, Türkiye, in 1998, graduated in June from the University of Washington, where she studied psychology and Middle Eastern languages and cultures.
She arrived in the occupied West Bank last Tuesday to volunteer with the International Solidarity Movement as part of an effort to support and safeguard Palestinian farmers.
