Body of activist shot in West Bank arrives in Turkey

ISTANBUL: The body of a US-Turkish activist, shot dead by Israeli forces while protesting against illegal Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank, arrived in Turkey on Friday.

The killing last week of Aysenur Ezgi Eygi, 26, has sparked international condemnation.

The United Nations rights office has accused Israeli forces of shooting Eygi in the head.

The Israeli army has acknowledged opening fire in the area and has said it is looking into the case.

Turkish officials, including Istanbul governor Davut, Gul attended the ceremony at Istanbul’s airport, where they prayed before the coffin wrapped in the Turkish flag.

Ankara has launched an investigation into Eygi’s death during a protest in the occupied West Bank town of Beita.

It has also petitioned the UN to launch an independent inquiry into the killing.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, a vocal opponent of Israel’s war in Gaza, has vowed to ensure “that Aysenur Ezgi’s death does not go unpunished”.

Her family said she was “shot in the head and killed by a bullet from an Israeli soldier” during a weekly demonstration against Israeli settlements, which are illegal under international law.

US President Joe Biden called on Wednesday for Israel to provide “full accountability” and demanded it “do more” to avoid such killings.

The European Union’s top diplomat, Josep Borrell, said on Tuesday that increased violence in the occupied West Bank meant it risked becoming “a new Gaza”.

Eygi’s family is hoping to hold her funeral on Saturday in the western coastal town of Didim.

“It’s sad but it’s also a source of pride for Didim,” Eygi’s uncle Ali Tikkim, 67, who lives in the town, said on Wednesday.

-AFP