'I told her to stay safe,' Palestinian activist Saif Sharabati recalls Aysenur Ezgi Eygi as saying just hours before she was shot dead
Rabia Iclal Turan and Tayfun Coskun |07.09.2024
SEATTLE, US
A friend of Turkish-American activist Aysenur Ezgi Eygi, killed on Friday by Israeli forces during a protest in the occupied West Bank, described her as “brave,” “honest” and “smart.”
Saif Sharabati, 20, a Palestinian-American based in Seattle, where Eygi lived, studied and married, spoke with her just hours before her death. She had been preparing to join a protest in Nablus, standing in solidarity with the Palestinian people.
“She was getting ready to go to that demonstration in solidarity with the Palestinian people in Nablus. She was standing in solidarity with them to defend their land,” he told Anadolu.
"She told me: ‘I’m not scared, but I’m not feeling good. I’m stressed out’... I told her she’s going to be fine. I told her to stay safe.”
Eygi was deeply impacted by her experiences in the West Bank, according to Sharabati, as it was her first time visiting the region. The harsh reality of the checkpoints and the situation on the ground moved her deeply. She had planned to visit Sharabati’s family in Hebron the following week – a visit that would never happen.
Despite knowing the dangers of traveling to the occupied territory, Eygi was determined to show her support for the Palestinian cause.
"She was brave," Sharabati said.
“She was telling me about her plans, about the visits that she was planning to do. She was planning on visiting my family in Hebron, West Bank, the next week. But that didn't happen because she was killed,” he added.
Eygi, 26, a dual US and Turkish citizen, was fatally shot by Israeli forces during a protest against illegal Israeli settlements in Beita, Nablus district of West Bank.
Witnesses reported that Israeli soldiers opened live fire on demonstrators against the illegal settlements on Mount Sbeih in Beita, south of Nablus. Though she was standing away from the main protest area, she was fatally shot. Despite being rushed to a hospital, medical workers were unable to save her.
Eygi had arrived in the West Bank on Tuesday, volunteering with the International Solidarity Movement (ISM) to help protect Palestinian farmers.
The Israeli military acknowledged the firing, claiming it responded to a "violent activity who hurled rocks at the forces and posed a threat to them (Israeli security forces)." Israel's claim had been rebuffed by witnesses and the ISM.
Born in Antalya, Türkiye in 1998, Eygi moved to Seattle, Washington, with her parents, Rabia Eygi and Mehmet Suat Eygi, when she was less than a year old, and graduated in June from the University of Washington, where she studied psychology and Middle Eastern languages and cultures.
Sharabati and Eygi had met a few months prior at a pro-Palestine university encampment in Seattle, quickly becoming close friends.
“Aisha was amazing,” he said. ”She was so nice. She was honest … She was that person who's doing things from her heart.”
Eygi had confided in Sharabati that this was her first time attending a such a demonstration in the West Bank, and she felt nervous. He urged her to stay safe and stay close to locals who knew the behavior of the Israeli soldiers and who knew how to handle the situation.
“She loved Palestine. She always wanted to stand with the Palestinians and their resistance against Israeli occupation. She gave me that shirt. It means me a lot,” Sharabati said.
“We will never forget Aisha,” he said, wearing a sweatshirt with a Palestinian map on it that she had given him as a gift a month ago.
The Turkish Foreign Ministry described Eygi’s death as a "murder" committed by the government of Benjamin Netanyahu. The US State Department and the White House said they were gathering more information from Israel about the circumstances of her death, and had requested an investigation.
Eygi's family released a statement on Thursday urging the Biden administration for an independent investigation into her killing.
"A U.S. citizen, Aysenur was peacefully standing for justice when she was killed by a bullet that video shows came from an Israeli military shooter. We welcome the White House's statement of condolences, but given the circumstances of Aysenur's killing, an Israeli investigation is not adequate," the family said in a statement.
"We call on President Biden, Vice President Harris, and Secretary of State Blinken to order an independent investigation into the unlawful killing of a U.S. citizen and to ensure full accountability for the guilty parties."
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