UW grad Aysenur Ezgi Eygi shot and killed in West Bank protest

Aysenur Ezgi Eygi, 26, a Turkish American woman and a recent graduate of the University of Washington, was allegedly shot and killed in the occupied West Bank on Friday around noon local time, a UW professor told Cascade PBS.

“I taught her once, but she’ll be forever my teacher,” said Aria Fani, UW assistant professor of Middle Eastern languages and cultures.

Eygi recently graduated from the UW earlier in the spring, wrapped in a Palestinian flag, according to Fani. She was part of the university student encampment on campus by the UW Progressive Student Union and the United Front’s “Popular University for Gaza.”

Fani was not shocked to know Eygi was in the West Bank but was devastated by the news of her death. He said he is still in the denial stage after receiving the news.

“Even as she was spending time with her family in Turkey, she still remained committed to fighting injustice, and this is after a year of activism on campus that really wore her down on multiple levels,” Fani said.

University of Washington President Ana Mari Cauce released a statement of condolence to her family.

“Aysenur was a peer mentor in psychology who helped welcome new students to the department and provided a positive influence in their lives,” Cauce wrote. “This is the second time over the past year that violence in the region has taken the life of a member of our UW community and I again join with our government and so many who are working and calling for a ceasefire and resolution to the crisis.”

Eygi was participating in a protest on a hilltop in the town of Beita against Israeli settlements when she was shot in the head and pronounced dead in Rafidia Hospital in Nablus, according to Fouad Nafia, the hospital’s doctor, The New York Times reported.

Eygi lived in Seattle and had recently arrived in Israel to volunteer with pro-Palestinian activist group International Solidarity Movement , according to The Washington Post. The group blamed Israeli troops for Eygi’s death.

The group released a press statement that cited a protester who witnessed the shooting, “Our fellow volunteer was standing a bit further back, near an olive tree with some other activists. Despite this, the army intentionally shot her in the head.”

The Israeli military released a statement on social media platform X that “ forces responded with fire toward a main instigator of violent activity who hurled rocks at the forces and posed a threat to them.” They are also investigating.

U.S. Ambassador to Israel Jack Lew shared on X condolences to Eygi’s family and said that the U.S. Embassy in Israel is investigating the cause of her death and prioritizing the “safety and security of American citizens.”

Turkish Foreign Ministry spokesperson Öncü Keçeli also shared an official statement on Eygi’s death: “The Israeli authorities who commit crimes against humanity and those who unconditionally support them will be held accountable before international courts.”

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