By Ben Hubbard and Gulson Harman
Amidst Turkish flags and shouts of “God is great” echoing through the cemetery, Aysenur Ezgi Eygi, a Turkish American activist murdered by Israeli forces in the West Bank, was interred on Saturday in a coastal town in Turkey’s Aegean region.
Though she relocated to the U.S. as a young child, gained citizenship, and spent the majority of her life there, Eygi’s funeral at age 26 was overwhelmingly Turkish and notably pro-Palestinian in nature.
Hundreds gathered at the central mosque in Didim, many adorned with Palestinian flags and scarves, to pray for her, including prominent Turkish officials. There were no U.S. officials present, and no American flag was visible.
In the nearly year since the conflict in Gaza erupted, Eygi’s two nations have expressed sharply contrasting positions on the issue. The United States has continuously supported Israel, providing military aid, even as alarm over civilian casualties has risen.
Conversely, Turkey has rallied behind the Palestinian cause, with President Recep Tayyip Erdogan condemning Israel’s actions and defending Hamas, classified as a terrorist group by Israel, the U.S., and other nations.
Two of Eygi’s family members stated that they were disheartened by the American response to her death. In a conversation prior to the funeral, her father, who is also a U.S. citizen, voiced his disappointment that the U.S. had not defended her.
“I have resided in the U.S. for 25 years, and I understand the seriousness with which the U.S. protects its citizens overseas,” commented her father, Mehmet Suat Eygi. “I know that when incidents occur, the U.S. reacts like the eagle on its emblem. But regarding Israel, it turns into a dove.”
Eygi was shot in the head and passed away on Sept. 6 during a demonstration by Palestinian and international activists opposing an Israeli settler outpost near Beita in the occupied West Bank. The Israeli military asserted that it is “highly likely” she was struck “indirectly and unintentionally” and that an investigation is ongoing.
Other activists present claimed she was positioned more than 200 yards away and downhill from the soldiers. They noted that the protest, where some demonstrators threw stones, had settled down by the time she was shot.
Senior officials from both of Eygi’s nations—born in Turkey, obtained U.S. citizenship in 2005 according to her father, and had lived in the Seattle area—have condemned her death.
Secretary of State Antony Blinken characterized the killing as “unprovoked and unjustified,” while President Joe Biden expressed in a statement his “outrage and deep sadness” over her passing.
“There must be full accountability,” Biden emphasized.
However, addressing attendees in Didim on Saturday, Numan Kurtulmus, the speaker of Turkey’s parliament, denounced not only Israel but also the nations that support it.
“This is not solely the wrongdoing of a few murderous Israeli soldiers,” he declared. “This is equally a crime by the states that back that terrorist state.”
Highlighting Turkey’s commitment to Eygi’s death as a national issue, notable officials at the funeral included the vice president; ministers of justice, interior, and foreign affairs; the leader of the largest opposition party; and a former prime minister.
President Erdogan announced on Monday that Turkey would pursue adding her killing to a genocide case against Israel at the International Court of Justice in The Hague. After Eygi’s body was returned to Turkey on Friday, the nation conducted an autopsy before transferring it to Didim.
Israel has dismissed genocide allegations, claiming it is acting in self-defense following the Hamas-led assault on Oct. 7 that resulted in approximately 1,200 fatalities.
Eygi’s death occurred amid increasing international condemnation of Israel’s actions in the Gaza conflict. According to the Gaza Health Ministry, over 41,000 individuals have died, without distinguishing between combatants and civilians.
Airstrikes persisted into Saturday, with the Palestinian Authority’s news agency Wafa reporting that 10 people, including women and children, were killed in an strike hitting a residence in Gaza City, among other casualties in the enclave. The Israeli military did not provide immediate comments.
Friends and family remembered Eygi as someone passionate about advocating for those she deemed victims of injustice.
This conviction drove her activism, frequently in association with socialist organizations, across Mexico, Myanmar, Australia, and Seattle. In the winter of 2016-17, she and fellow activists camped in North Dakota to protest the Dakota Access Pipeline, which was planned to be located near the Standing Rock Sioux Reservation.
She also became an ardent supporter of the Palestinian cause, which led her to visit the Israeli-occupied West Bank to participate in protests against settlements there.
“She stood out,” remarked her cousin, Sercan Eygi, 28, in an interview after the funeral. “Most activists don’t even attempt to step outside their comfort zones.”
Eygi had been in Turkey prior to heading to the West Bank and told her relatives she was going to the safer Jordan, as indicated by her cousin. Upon discovering via social media her actual location, he reached out to her.
“I urged her not to risk her life,” he recalled saying. “She responded, ‘I’ll do my best.’”
She was shot the very next day.
