The family of a 26-year-old American woman killed during a protest in the occupied West Bank said an Israeli soldier shot and killed her, adding that an Israeli investigation into the incident would not be sufficient.
Aysenur Ezgi Ece, a graduate of the University of Washington in Seattle, was shot dead during a demonstration in Beyta on Friday, the International Solidarity Movement (ISM) said.
“Aysenur was standing peacefully for justice when she was killed by a bullet that video footage shows was fired by an Israeli soldier,” the Ege family said.
“We welcome the White House's statement of condolences, but given the circumstances of Aysenor's death, the Israeli investigation is insufficient,” her family said in a statement.
“We call on President Biden, Vice President Harris, and Secretary of State Blinken to order an independent investigation into the unlawful killing of an American citizen and ensure full accountability for the guilty parties,” they said.
The White House said it had asked the Israeli government for more information and called for an investigation. National Security Council spokesman Sean Savitt said they were “deeply troubled” by Iggy's death.
The International Solidarity Movement said that Iji was participating in his weekly demonstration in the town of Beita, north of Ramallah, against the expansion of Israeli settlements in the West Bank.
The organization said in a statement that the protest “involved primarily men and children praying” and was met with force by Israeli occupation forces who fired tear gas before using live ammunition.
The International Solidarity Movement said Eiji was shot in the head and died shortly after being taken to a hospital in Nablus. Eiji is the 18th protester killed in Beita since 2020, and the only non-Palestinian, according to the International Solidarity Movement.
The Israel Defense Forces said it was in the area near the village of Beita and “responded with fire towards the main instigator of the violent activity who threw stones at the forces and posed a threat to them.”
“The IDF is looking into reports that a foreign national was killed as a result of gunfire in the area. The details of the incident and the circumstances surrounding her injury are being reviewed,” the Israeli military said in a statement.
Ece was a dual citizen, also holding Turkish citizenship. In a statement, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said he condemned “Israel's barbaric intervention against a civilian protest against the occupation in the West Bank.”
Eiji's LinkedIn profile says she is a psychology graduate with a minor in Middle Eastern languages and cultures, and that she was committed to serving underserved communities.
“I am driven by a passion to make a positive impact and am constantly looking for opportunities to learn, grow, and contribute to meaningful projects,” she wrote.
The University of Washington in Seattle said Iggy was a recent graduate, and the university's president called the news of her death “shocking.”
“My heart goes out to Aisinor’s family, friends and loved ones,” university President Anna Marie Cossey said in a statement. “Aisinor was a psychology mentor who helped welcome new students to the department and provided a positive influence in their lives.”
Iggy is the second UW community member to die in violence in the area, Koss said. “I join our government and many others who are working and calling for a ceasefire and resolution to the crisis,” she added.
Her death was an “unimaginable tragedy,” Ege's family said in a statement Friday, adding that she had just turned 26. “Aysenur was a loving daughter, sister, partner and aunt,” they added.
“She was kind, brave, goofy, supportive, and a ray of sunshine. She wore her heart on her sleeve. She felt a deep responsibility to serve others and lived a life of caring for those in need through action,” the family said. “She was a passionate human rights activist throughout her life — a steadfast and strong advocate for justice.”
Iji, who graduated from the university three months ago, had participated in protests on campus as a student and then traveled to the West Bank.
“Isnor felt compelled to travel to the West Bank to stand in solidarity with Palestinian civilians who continue to suffer from ongoing oppression and violence,” they said.
At least two other American citizens have been killed in the West Bank since October 7. Mohammed Ahmed Mohammed Khaddour, 17, was shot dead by IDF forces in February, and Tawfiq Hafez Abdul Jabbar, 17, was killed by Israeli fire in January.
Israeli settlements have expanded rapidly over the past several years, with Israeli settler violence against Palestinians on the rise. In April, Human Rights Watch released a report alleging that armed settlers had violently and forcibly removed Palestinian residents from at least five West Bank settlements “with the active participation of army units.”
Israeli forces appear to be withdrawing from the city of Jenin and other parts of the West Bank, where the IDF has carried out a bloody, days-long operation that has left neighborhoods across the city and beyond in ruins.
In Jenin, the IDF said at least 14 people it considered terrorists were killed, including Wassim Hazem, the head of Hamas's Jenin office, who was said to have directed shooting and bombing attacks in the area.
The IDF also arrested more than 30 people as suspects, though the military did not clarify what it suspected.
At least 39 people have been killed in the West Bank since Israel launched what it called an operation to dismantle “terror cells” in the area on Aug. 28, Palestinian health officials said on Thursday.
Reports claimed that many of those killed were members of Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad, although the Palestinian Health Ministry said at least eight children were also among the dead at the time.
“For more than a week, Israeli forces have been using lethal, war-like tactics across the northern West Bank, deepening the humanitarian needs of the population and raising concerns about excessive use of force,” the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) said in a humanitarian update published on Wednesday.
OCHA said that between August 27 and September 2, Israeli forces killed 30 Palestinians in the Strip, including seven children, “representing the highest weekly death toll since November 2023.”
In 2022, Israel admitted that one of its soldiers shot Palestinian-American journalist Shireen Abu Akleh, who was covering raids in the occupied West Bank for Al Jazeera at the time. No one in the Israeli military has been prosecuted, and the military has not announced any disciplinary measures.
