US activist killed by Israeli fire buried in Türkiye

Andrew Wilks and Wafaa Shurafa
| Associated Press

Istanbul, Türkiye – A Turkish-American activist killed by Israeli fire in the West Bank was buried in her hometown in Turkey on Saturday, as thousands lined the streets and anti-Israel sentiments rose in the country amid a conflict that threatens to spread across the region.

Aysenur Ezgi Eygi, a 26-year-old Seattle woman, was shot dead by an Israeli soldier on September 6 during a demonstration against Israeli settlements in the West Bank, according to an Israeli protester who witnessed the shooting.

Thousands of people lined the streets of the Turkish coastal town of Didim on the Aegean Sea as Eygi was buried in a coffin draped with a Turkish flag taken from her parents' home. A portrait of her in her graduation gown leaned against the coffin as people paid their last respects.

Her body was previously taken from a hospital to her family's home and to the central mosque in Didim.

Turkey condemned the murder and announced that it would investigate her death. “We will not leave our daughter's blood on the ground and we demand responsibility and accountability for this murder,” Numan Kurtulmus, the speaker of the Turkish parliament, told mourners at the funeral.

An autopsy was performed at the Izmir Institute of Legal Medicine on Friday. Kurtulmus said the examination showed that Eygi was hit by a bullet in the back of her head, below her left ear.

The Israeli military said on Tuesday that Eygi was likely shot “indirectly and unintentionally” by Israeli forces.

Their deaths were condemned by US Secretary of State Antony Blinken as the United States, Egypt and Qatar push for a ceasefire in the 11-month war between Israel and Hamas and the release of the remaining hostages held by Hamas. The talks have repeatedly stalled as Israel and Hamas accuse each other of making new and unacceptable demands.

The war began when Hamas militants killed around 1,200 people, mostly civilians, in an attack on southern Israel on October 7. They kidnapped another 250 people and still hold around 100 hostages, having released most of the rest in exchange for Palestinians Israel held during a week-long ceasefire in November. Around a third of the remaining hostages are believed to be dead.

Israeli air strikes hit Gaza

On Saturday night, Israeli air strikes hit the center and south of the Gaza Strip, killing at least 14 people.

The strikes in Gaza City hit a house where 11 people lived, including three women and four children, and another attack hit a tent in Khan Younis housing Palestinians displaced by the war between Israel and Hamas, Gaza Civil Defense said. The attacks followed airstrikes earlier this week that hit a tent camp on Tuesday and a United Nations school housing refugees on Wednesday.

The Israeli army on Saturday ordered Palestinians seeking shelter in the northern neighborhoods of Manshiyeh, Beit Lahia and Sheikh Zayed to evacuate south toward Gaza City. The order came after missiles were fired from the area, the Israeli army said in a post on X. It remains unclear how many people are seeking shelter in these areas.

First phase of anti-polio campaign completed

Meanwhile, a campaign to vaccinate children against polio in Gaza has been suspended. The World Health Organization said that around 559,000 children under the age of 10 have recovered from their first dose. That is seven out of eight children who were supposed to be vaccinated as part of the campaign. The second dose is due to be administered later this month. The WHO said the parties had already agreed on this.

“As we prepare for the next round in four weeks, we are confident that these pauses will endure because this campaign has clearly shown the world what is possible when you give peace a chance,” Richard Peeperkorn, WHO representative in Gaza and the West Bank, said in a statement on Saturday.

The war has caused enormous destruction and displaced around 90 percent of Gaza's 2.3 million residents, often multiple times. It has also plunged the territory into a severe humanitarian crisis. Gaza's Health Ministry says more than 41,000 Palestinians have been killed since the war began. The ministry makes no distinction between civilians and militants in its count, but says women and children make up just over half of the dead. Israel says it has killed more than 17,000 militants in the war.

Associated Press writers Samy Magdy in Cairo and Sam Metz in Rabat, Morocco, contributed to this report.

One dead, one accused in Wednesday's accident - CCN

NYT suspects that F-16 fighter jet in Ukraine was probably not shot down by “friendly fire”

Video: Man survives horror crash – truck crashes into toll booth | News

US activist killed by Israeli fire buried in Türkiye

Israeli air strikes hit Gaza

First phase of anti-polio campaign completed

Related posts:

By Hudson Brooklyn

You Missed

He is only 15 years old – moped driver fights for his life after accident

Beauty & The Nerd: Are the beautiful the superior species?

São Paulo Military Police uses Motorola Solutions body cameras to improve security

Student accused of stabbing at Sterling High School showed no remorse

US activist killed by Israeli fire buried in Türkiye

Israeli air strikes hit Gaza

First phase of anti-polio campaign completed

Related posts:

By Hudson Brooklyn

Related Post

He is only 15 years old – moped driver fights for his life after accident

Beauty & The Nerd: Are the beautiful the superior species?

São Paulo Military Police uses Motorola Solutions body cameras to improve security

You Missed

He is only 15 years old – moped driver fights for his life after accident

Beauty & The Nerd: Are the beautiful the superior species?

São Paulo Military Police uses Motorola Solutions body cameras to improve security

Student accused of stabbing at Sterling High School showed no remorse