Wednesday, September 11, 2024

Washington’s Reaction to IDF Killing of Aysenur Eygi is Disgraceful and Hypocritical

Last week, 26-year-old Turkish-American activist Aysenur Eygi was brutally murdered by the Israel Defense Forces (IDF).  She was killed as she protested, alongside several other activists with the International Solidarity Movement, against settlement expansion and settler terrorism against Palestinians in Beita; a village located in the illegally occupied Palestinian city of Nablus.

Multiple eyewitness accounts asserted that Eygi, along with the other demonstrators, posed no threat and were protesting in an area where no combatants were present. But that did not matter, as the IDF fired live rounds into the crowd of activists which struck Eygi in the head and killed her instantly.

The Joe Biden administration, including Democratic presidential nominee Kamala Harris, has yet to issue a vindictive statement condemning the Israeli army for the cold-blooded murder of Ms.Eygi. Collectively, Washington’s reaction to the IDF murdering Aysenur Eygi has been disgraceful for a litany of reasons.

Firstly, the U.S. provides Israel with $3.8 billion annually in military aid and has given Israel over $300 billion worth of military and financial aid since 1948. This includes missiles, cluster bombs, and American-manufactured assault rifles often used by IDF battalions in the illegally occupied West Bank. It’s revolting that the United States, a global superpower, cannot muster the moral and political courage to end the flow of such weapons to Israel, which are actively being used to kill U.S. citizens like Aysneur Eygi. This same U.S.-funded military is using those weapons to facilitate genocide in Gaza and accelerate the ethnic cleansing of Palestinians, paving the way for more illegal settlements.

Beyond the U.S. unwillingness to impose an arms embargo, the incredibly weak and pathetic responses given by U.S. leaders in the wake of Eygi’s death must also be scrutinized. Secretary of State Anthony Blinken opined that Israel needed to make “some fundamental changes to the way they operate in the West Bank, including changes to their rules of engagement.” In saying that, Blinken fails to acknowledge the fact that the Israelis have no legal basis for being in the West Bank to begin with. Had there been no illegal occupation of Palestine, Eygi would still be alive today.

Blinken also stated that “no one should be killed for attending a protest.” His comments were weak, signaling a massive indifference towards Eygi’s murder. On the other hand, Biden issued a disgusting statement insisting that the Israeli killing of Eygi was “an accident, the bullet ricocheted off the ground, she got hit by accident.” Someone should tell Biden that a sniper rifle is a weapon that requires deliberate precision.

However, the embarrassment did not stop there. On Monday, State Department spokesperson Vedant Patel was being pressed regarding Aysneur’s murder. However, Patel refused to publicly acknowledge that the IDF killed Ms. Eygi. When asked if he had any doubts that it was an Israeli soldier who killed Eygi, Patel told reporters, “I’m not going to get ahead of the process here.”

To add insult to injury, President Biden has reportedly not spoken with her family to grant them condolences for losing their daughter. It is inexcusable, and sheer cowardice, for the President of the United States to not even interact with the family of a slain American. Biden may eventually do so, but waiting several days to grant condolences is a major insult.

Speaking of Eygi’s family, they are rightfully demanding an independent investigation into her death. The State Department has made clear it will not be investigating her murder and is hoping instead that Israel investigates her demise. The IDF has reported that they have already looked into the matter and determined that Eygi was “unintentionally” and “highly likely” killed by an IDF soldier.

The United States should not accept their determination. Israel cannot be trusted to conduct an impartial investigation into its wrongdoings. After Rachel CorrieShireen Abu AklehOmar AssadMohammad Khdour, and Tawfic Abdel Jabbar, now Aysenur Eygi joins the long list of Americans whose murder Israel labels “an accident.” Thus, it makes no sense to believe that this army accused of a grave crime could fully hold themselves accountable. If anything, history has demonstrated it is more likely Israel will exonerate itself of any wrongdoing. It is abhorrent and disgraceful that the United States government could stand idly by, refusing to ensure that Aysenur Eygi’s family seek justice for this unholy crime.

Aside from the fact that the U.S. refuses to investigate Ms. Eygi’s murder, perhaps the most disturbing fact from this ordeal lies within the Biden administration’s gross hypocrisy. In February, when Iran-backed militias killed three U.S. soldiers during an attack on Jordan’s airbase, Biden proclaimed that ‘if you harm an American, we will respond.” Israel has just killed yet another American citizen, and the administration refuses to issue substantial consequences. This is hypocrisy at its finest. For the disgraceful response to Eygi’s killing essentially manufactures future consent for Israel, and possibly other nations, to kill American citizens with impunity.

Abdelhalim Abdelrahman is a Palestinian-American writer and analyst located in Michigan. His work focusing on Palestine has been featured in The Hill, New Arab, Foreign Policy, and Responsible Statecraft.


GENOCIDE JOE;  ENABLER

US urges Israel to reassess military rules after Turkish-American activist’s death

WASHINGTON

U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin on Tuesday urged Israel to reassess its military rules of engagement following the death of Turkish-American activist Ayşenur Ezgi Eygi, who was killed by an Israeli sniper in the occupied West Bank.

Haberin Devamı

According to the Pentagon, Austin conveyed his concerns in a phone call with Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, emphasizing the Israeli Defense Forces' responsibility for what he described as the "unprovoked and unjustified" death of the American citizen.

"The Secretary urged Minister Gallant to reexamine the IDF's rules of engagement while operating in the West Bank," the Pentagon's statement outlined.

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Tuesday said that Israel's military needs to make "fundamental changes" when asked about the activist killing.

"Her killing was both unprovoked and unjustified," Blinken said of the death of 26-year-old Ayşenur Ezgi Eygi.

"In our judgement, Israeli security forces need to make some fundamental changes in the way that they operate in the West Bank, including changes to their rules of engagement," he told reporters in London.

The killing of Eygi by Israeli soldiers has shown Israel targets even those “who are in favor of peace,” Türkiye's foreign minister said on Tuesday.

Hakan Fidan, speaking to Anadolu in Cairo where he attended a session of the Arab League's Council of Foreign Ministers, vowed Türkiye will follow this “murder” from a legal perspective.

He expressed condolences to Eygi's family and emphasized the incident's significance in revealing Israel's approach towards peace advocates.

Eygi, 26, who held dual Turkish and U.S. citizenship, was killed by Israeli forces during a protest against illegal settlements in Beita. On Tuesday, the Israeli army stated it was "highly likely" that Eygi was hit "indirectly and unintentionally" by its fire.

U.S. President Joe Biden called the shooting of Eygi in the head by an Israeli sniper an "accident," adding that the bullet apparently "ricocheted off the ground, and she got hit.”

Biden has not spoken with the family of Eygi to offer his condolences, White House National Security Council spokesperson John Kirby said Monday in response to a question.

In a separate statement, Eygi's family expressed outrage over any suggestion that her death at the hands of an Israeli sniper was unintentional, reiterating their calls for an independent investigation into her killing

In a separate statement, Eygi's family condemned the notion that her death was accidental, demanding an independent investigation.

"The Israeli military's preliminary inquiry into Aysenur's killing is wholly inadequate; we are deeply offended by the suggestion that her killing by a trained sniper was in any way unintentional," the family said in a statement.


"As we mourn the death of our beloved Aysenur, we reiterate our demand for U.S. government leaders - President Biden, Vice President (Kamala) Harris and Secretary of State (Antony) Blinken - to order an independent investigation into the Israeli military's deliberate targeting and killing of a US Citizen," the statement added.




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