'Do something to save lives!' Congresswoman asks Blinken after Israel killing of Turkish-American activist

Palestinian descent US Congresswoman Rashida Tlaib takes part in a demonstration organized with the attendance of multiple Jewish groups outside the Capitol Building in Washington DC, United States on October 18, 2023 to advocate for a halt in hostilities in Gaza [Celal Güneş – Anadolu Agency]

US Congresswoman, Rashida Tlaib, on Friday urged Secretary of State, Antony Blinken, to “do something” after the killing of a Turkish-American activist by the Israeli army in the northern Occupied West Bank, Anadolu Agency reports.

“@SecBlinken: Do something to save lives!” Tlaib said on X.

Her remarks came after Aysenur Ezgi Eygi was shot dead by Israeli forces on Friday during a protest against illegal Israeli settlements in the town of Beita in the Nablus district of the Occupied West Bank.

In a separate post addressed to the US State Department spokesperson, Matthew Miller, Tlaib said: “Hey how’d they die, Matt? Was it magic? Who or what killed Aysenur? Asking on behalf of Americans who want to know.”

The White House said that it is “deeply disturbed” by the fatal shooting of Eygi, 26, and has formally requested Israel to investigate her death.

READ: White House says ‘deeply disturbed’ by killing of Turkish-American activist in West Bank

Fouad Nafaa, the Director of the Rafidia Hospital in Nablus, told Anadolu that Eygi arrived at the hospital with a gunshot wound to the head. She succumbed to her injuries, despite attempts by medical teams to revive her, according to Nafaa.

Eyewitnesses reported that Israeli soldiers opened live fire on a group of Palestinians participating in a demonstration condemning the illegal settlements on Mount Sbeih in Beita, which lies south of the city of Nablus.

The official Palestinian news agency, Wafa, confirmed that the victim was a volunteer with the Fazaa campaign, an initiative aimed at supporting and protecting Palestinian farmers from ongoing violations by illegal Israeli settlers and the military.

Residents of Beita hold weekly protests after Friday prayers to oppose the illegal Israeli settlement of Avitar, which sits on the peak of Mount Sbeih. The community demands the removal of the settlement, which they view as a violation of their land rights.

Eygi was born in the Turkish city of Antalya in 1998.

READ: UN demands ‘full investigation’ on killing of Turkish-American activist by Israel forces in West Bank

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