US says initial probe into US citizen's killing does not exonerate Israel

By Humeyra Pamuk and Simon Lewis

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Israel's initial findings on the killing of U.S. citizen Ayşenur Ezgi Eygi do not exonerate Israeli security forces, State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller said on Monday, warning that Washington would consider other measures if it is not satisfied with the results of a full Israeli probe.

Israel acknowledged that its troops shot 26-year-old Eygi, who is also a Turkish citizen, on Sept. 6 while she took part in a protest against settlement expansion in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, but said it was an unintentional act during a demonstration that turned violent.

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken last week described Eygi's killing as "unprovoked and unjustified" and demanded an overhaul of Israeli military conduct in the West Bank. Speaking at a regular press briefing on Monday, Miller said her killing should never have happened.

"I hear people ... hold the initial findings up as if they somehow exonerated Israeli security forces. They very much do not, at least in our point of view," he said.

The United States will be waiting for the results of the full investigation, which it expects to be prompt, thorough and transparent, Miller said. If those results aren't satisfactory, Washington could take its own action, he added, without saying what that would be.

"If the first investigation plays out. ... and we are not satisfied, we will of course look at whether any other measures are appropriate," Miller added.

In a statement, the Israeli military said its commanders had conducted an initial investigation into the incident and found that the gunfire was not aimed at her but another individual it called "the key instigator of the riot."

Miller declined to say if Israeli security forces had assured American officials that they would make demanded changes in their rules of engagement.

A surge in settler assaults on Palestinians in the West Bank has angered Western allies of Israel, including the United States, which has imposed sanctions on some settlers. Tensions have heightened over Israel's war against Hamas militants in Gaza.

Israel has occupied the West Bank of the Jordan River since the 1967 Middle East war. Palestinians envisage it as the core of a future independent state.

(Reporting by Humeyra Pamuk, Simon Lewis and Costas Pitas; Editing by Mark Porter and Howard Goller)