Funeral held in Türkiye for activist killed by Israel in West Bank
İZMİR
Mourners gathered in southwest Türkiye Saturday for the funeral of a U.S.-Turkish activist shot dead while protesting Israeli settlements in the West Bank.
The killing last week of 26-year-old Ayşenur Ezgi Eygi has sparked international condemnation and infuriated Türkiye, further escalating tensions over the war in Gaza.
Eygi's body, wrapped in the Turkish flag, arrived at its final resting place in the Aegean town of Didim on Friday following a martyrs' ceremony at Istanbul's airport.
Eygi was a frequent visitor to the seaside resort.
The family wanted Eygi to be buried in Didim, where her grandfather lives and her grandmother has been laid to rest.
Parliament Speaker Numan Kurtulmuş visited the family of slain Turkish American activist to offer his condolences on their loss.
"Just as the blood of every martyred Palestinian is sacred, Ayşenur Eygi's blood is equally sacred. We will follow her case until the end," Kurtulmuş told her mourning family, relatives and friends.
The Family and Social Services Minister Mahinur Özdemir Göktaş and Justice Minister Yılmaz Tunç also visited the family to offer his condolences.
Ankara said this week it was probing her death and pressed the United Nations for an independent inquiry.
Türkiye is also planning to issue international arrest warrants for those responsible for Eygi's death depending on the findings of its investigation.
A large crowd is expected at the funeral, including members of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's Islamic-rooted AKP party, as well as activists advocating the Palestinian cause.
The burial is scheduled to take place after midday prayers.
'Seek justice'
The young woman's body arrived in Istanbul on Friday morning before being transferred to Türkiye's third-biggest city Izmir, where an autopsy was carried out.
Turkish officials said the findings from the autopsy would be used as evidence for Türkiye's own probe.
Eygi was shot in the head while taking part in a peaceful protest on Sept. 6 in the northern part of the occupied West Bank, near Nablus.
Her mother Rabia Birden on Friday urged Turkish officials to pursue justice.
"The only thing I ask of our state is to seek justice for my daughter," she was quoted as saying by Anadolu news agency.
Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, dedicated to the Palestinian cause, has vowed to ensure "that Ayşenur Ezgi's death does not go unpunished".
The United Nations said Eygi had been taking part in a "peaceful anti-settlement protest" in Beita, the scene of weekly demonstrations.
Israeli settlements, where about 490,000 people live in the West Bank, are illegal under international law.
U.S. President Joe Biden on Wednesday called for Israel to provide "full accountability" for Eygi's death.
The Israeli army has acknowledged opening fire in the area and has said it is looking into the case.
An autopsy carried out by three Palestinian doctors pointed to a direct hit that passed through the victim's skull.
"Ayşenur was a very special person. She was sensitive to human rights, to nature, to everything," said her father Mehmet Suat Eygi, on Thursday outside the family home in Didim.