Funeral held for Turkish-American activist shot by Israeli soldier

A Turkish-American activist who was shot dead by the Israeli Defence Forces while attending a protest in the West Bank was buried on Saturday.

Azsenur Ezgi Eygi, who lived in Seattle and held both US and Turkish citizenship, was buried in her home town of Didim in Turkey.

Egyi was shot and killed by Israeli forces last week during a protest against settlement expansion.

She posed no threat to Israeli forces at the time, according to a fellow protester, Jonathan Polland, who is an Israeli. He also said the shooting came during a moment of calm following clashes between protesters and troops.

Egyi was likely shot “indirectly and unintentionally” according to the Israeli military. Turkey said it would conduct its own investigation into her death.

“We are not going to leave our daughter’s blood on the ground and we demand responsibility and accountability for this murder,” Numan Kurtulus, the speaker of Turkey’s parliament, told mourners.

Thousands of people bid her farewell - with the streets lined with Turkish flags.

Her death was widely condemned, including by the US Secretary of State Antony Blinken as the United States, Egypt and Qatar push for a cease-fire and the release of remaining hostages held by Hamas.

Talks have repeatedly faced hurdles as both Israel and Hamas accuse each other of making new and unacceptable demands.

At a meeting with the Chairman of the Presidency of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Turkish President Recep Tayvip Erdogan condemned the ongoing war.

“What happened in Bosnia in the 1990s is now being experienced in Gaza and the occupied Palestinian territories,” he said in a press conference.