US lawmaker renews call for investigation into killing of Turkish-American activist by Israel

By Rabia Iclal Turan

WASHINGTON (AA) - US Representative Pramila Jayapal slammed the Biden administration Tuesday for the lack of movement toward an independent investigation into the killing of Turkish-American activist Aysenur Ezgi Eygi last month by Israeli forces in the occupied West Bank.

Jayapal also urged the US government to demand accountability by stopping certain offensive military assistance to Israel.

“It has been 32 days since Aysenur Ezgi Eygi was killed in the West Bank, and we have seen no movement toward an independent investigation by the US government and no additional information on changes in the practices of the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) units that are using live ammunition on those who are peacefully protesting," Jayapal, a Democratic representative from Washington's 7th congressional district, said in a statement

Noting that she has had numerous briefings with State Department officials and has been in close touch with Eygi’s family, she said: "I am frankly appalled with the lack of movement on this case."

"I have received no information that gives me any assurance that the killing of a US citizen by the IDF is being treated with the urgency it deserves," she added.

Jayapal emphasized that Eygi’s case is part of a troubling pattern.

“This is not the first time Israeli forces have killed US citizens,” she said, referencing the 2003 killing of Rachel Corrie, a 23-year-old peace activist from Washington state, in the West Bank.

She emphasized that the US government failed to act in that case as well, despite widespread calls for an investigation.

Noting that three US citizens have been killed in the West Bank in 2024, she stressed that US citizens must be safe abroad, and if they are killed, the US government "must act."

“The US is the largest backer of military assistance to Israel. If the Israeli government is unwilling or unable to follow our own domestic laws as well as international humanitarian laws, we must demand accountability by stopping certain offensive US military assistance," she said.

Jayapal and 102 other members of Congress had previously issued a joint statement urging the US government to conduct an independent investigation into the killing of Eygi.

Eygi, 26, a dual Turkish-US national, was killed by Israeli forces on Sept. 6 during a peaceful protest against illegal Israeli settlements near Nablus in the occupied West Bank.

A preliminary investigation by the Israeli army found that Eygi was "highly likely" hit "indirectly and unintentionally" by Israeli fire targeting a "main instigator of violent activity who hurled rocks" during the protest.

However, video evidence and eyewitness accounts have contradicted Israel's version of events. A report by The Washington Post also revealed that Eygi was shot more than 30 minutes after the peak of confrontations in Beita and about 20 minutes after protesters had moved over 200 yards down the main road, away from Israeli forces.

Eygi’s family says she was killed in a targeted attack and is calling on the US government to launch an independent investigation into her killing.

Turkish authorities are also conducting their own investigation into Eygi’s killing.