One week has passed since US-backed Israeli forces shot and killed 26-year-old US citizen Ayşenur Eygi as she demonstrated against US-condemned illegal settlement activity in the West Bank. And the White House has still not reached out to the victim’s family.
Since the shooting, Eygi’s family has made repeated appeals to the US government for an independent investigation, and for at least a simple phone call from US leaders.
“No one from the investigation has contacted us,” said Vivi, a volunteer with Faz3a, a group leading a campaign to provide protective presence to Palestinians against illegal Israeli settler activity. “So, it’s a bit frustrating, because what kind of investigation are you doing if you aren’t even talking to the people who are right next to her when she was killed.”
Days later, on Tuesday, the Israeli military announced its initial findings: it was “highly likely” that Eygi “was hit indirectly & unintentionally by IDF fire which was not aimed at her but aimed at the key instigator of the riot.”
Shortly after, Biden told reporters: "Apparently it was an accident, ricocheted off the ground and just got hit by accident. I’m working that o
Eygi’s family responded publicly to Biden’s statement, saying they were “deeply offended by the suggestion that her killing by a trained sniper was in any way unintentional,” reiterating their demand for Biden, Harris, and Blinken to order an independent investigation.