One year on, family of US citizen killed by Israel still seeking justice

Aysenur Ezgi Eygi’s loved ones say they will continue to pursue accountability for her 2024 killing in the occupied West Bank.

Washington, DC – One year after Israeli forces killed United States citizen Aysenur Ezgi Eygi, her husband, Hamid Ali, says confusion and sorrow continue to grip his life.

“It’s been very painful adjusting to life without Aysenur – an empty house, seeing the effect it’s had on her father and her family. The word I’d use to summarise is confusing,” Ali told media.

Eygi, whose first name is pronounced Aysha-nour, was fatally shot by Israeli forces while participating in a protest against an illegal settler outpost in the occupied West Bank on September 6, 2024.

As Israel intensifies its assault on Gaza, violence in the West Bank has also been on the rise. At least 10 US citizens have been killed by Israeli soldiers and settlers since 2022.

The administrations of Presidents Joe Biden and Donald Trump have ignored calls by Eygi’s family for a US-led investigation into her killing while Washington has continued to provide Israel with billions of dollars in military aid.

Ozden Bennett, Eygi’s sister, said she understands that justice may not be within sight but that does not shake the family’s resolve to keep the slain activist’s memory alive.

“We’re committed to the long-haul journey of seeking justice and accountability and finding meaning in the process of doing that, even if it doesn’t happen immediately or perhaps ever. I’m hopeful it will,” Bennett told media.

“I see us continuing to ask for accountability and justice for my sister because it’s the right thing to do and she deserves that. Every life taken senselessly by Israel deserves that.”

Eygi, who was of Turkish descent and lived in Seattle, Washington, was 26 when she was killed. Those who knew her said she was joyous and empathetic.

She had been engaged in activism from a young age and was deeply moved by injustices in the US and abroad. Both Ali and Bennett described her as almost “childlike” in her compassion and playfulness.

“She always had that kind of childlike essence to her, that curiosity, that silliness,” Bennett said. “She was such a special, sweet – sometimes annoying – sister that I just miss so much.”

Ali believes it was that authenticity that drove her to activism.

“She was someone who had to live by her values and her beliefs, and she had to say how she felt,” he told media.

Remembering Aysenur

“So that’s the kind of person she was, and that’s exactly why she felt like doing the activism that she did in the [United] States wasn’t enough. She felt like going to the West Bank was the next thing that she was able to do.”

At least two more US citizens have been killed in the West Bank since Eygi was shot.

But the Trump administration has only called on Israel to investigate its own abuses. Israel rarely finds wrongdoing in the conduct of its forces against Palestinians and their supporters.

Similarly, when Eygi was killed last year, the administration of then-President Biden called on Israel to investigate the incident, but it failed to launch its own inquiry.

That lack of accountability is a recurring pattern. In all 10 cases of Americans being killed by Israeli settlers and soldiers since 2022, no criminal charges have been brought against the perpetrators

The victims include veteran media reporter Shireen Abu Akleh, who was shot in the head while wearing a bright blue jacket labelled “press”.

Rights advocates have called the inaction a form of impunity for those who kill Americans overseas. They trace the trend back decades, as far back as 2003, when an Israeli bulldozer ran over activist Rachel Corrie in Gaza.

She had been trying to protect a Palestinian home from demolition at the time of her death.

Corrie, who was also from Washington state, is now one of the icons of the Palestinian cause in the West. Still, no one has been held accountable for her killing.

Ali drew a parallel between his wife’s death and Corrie’s killing.

“It was the same with Rachel Corrie, and that was 20-plus years ago, so this isn’t anything new unfortunately,” he said.