Family of Turkish-American activist killed by Israel to meet with Blinken Monday

WASHINGTON (AA) – The family of Turkish-American activist Aysenur Ezgi Eygi, who was killed by Israel in the West Bank, will meet with Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Monday, a family spokesperson confirmed to Anadolu on Wednesday.

Family members, including her father Mehmet Suat Eygi, sister Ozden Bennett, and husband Hamid Ali, will also meet with Congress members on Capitol Hill on Tuesday and hold a press conference, according to the spokesperson.

The meeting comes as the family continues to urge the Biden administration to launch an independent investigation into her killing, saying that she was killed in a deliberate attack during a peaceful protest.

The US called on Israeli authorities to conduct a “swift, thorough, and transparent investigation” into her killing three months ago, but no accountability has been achieved to date.

Eygi’s family has criticized the Biden administration for its failure to initiate an independent investigation, stating that they expected President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris to speak with them “directly” and ensure a transparent investigation into her killing.

When asked about the status of the Israeli investigation, State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller told Anadolu at a briefing last month that the US wants to see “the end of the (Israeli) investigation”.

“We continue to press the Government of Israel to conduct its investigation and to brief us on the results of that investigation,” he said.

Eygi, 26, was killed by Israeli forces Sept. 6 during a peaceful protest against illegal Israeli settlements near Nablus in the occupied West Bank.

A preliminary investigation by Israel found that Eygi was “highly likely” hit “indirectly and unintentionally” by Israeli fire that was targeting a “main instigator of violent activity who hurled rocks” during the protest.

Video evidence and witness accounts, however, have contradicted Israel’s version of events, with many saying she was directly hit by an Israeli sniper.

A report by The Washington Post also revealed that Eygi was shot more than 30 minutes after the peak of confrontations in Beita and about 20 minutes after protesters had moved over 200 yards down the main road, away from Israeli forces.

Turkish prosecutors launched an investigation on Sept. 11 into the killing Eygi, who was laid to rest in the town of Didim.