- 'No country should be above the laws agreed upon by the nations of the world,' Hamid Ali says in call for justice after his wife, 26, was killed by an Israeli sniper at a peaceful West Bank demonstration
- Eygi 'is alive in anyone who uncompromisingly stands for justice and believes a better world is possible,' says Ali
ISTANBUL
Aysenur Ezgi Eygi, a 26-year-old Turkish-American activist, arrived in the West Bank on Sept. 3, joining locals and fellow activists to peacefully protest Israel’s occupation of Palestine.
Three days later, she was shot by an Israeli army sniper. The incident took place during a march in the Palestinian village of Beita, near Nablus. The Israeli army has claimed her death was accidental, but video evidence and witness accounts dispute this, alleging she was deliberately targeted.
Eygi’s death has left her family and friends reeling. But even through the grief, they have had to mount a fight for justice and what her husband, Hamid Ali, has called a lack of meaningful action from the US government.
“It’s frustrating to hear the same things over and over ... it’s almost like a non-response. They haven’t really done anything about it,” Ali told Anadolu, sitting in an Istanbul cafe, from where Eygi spoke to her husband last year before flying to Palestine.
Ali was in the Turkish metropolis’ Uskudar district to visit the cafe and relive fond memories of his wife.
Three months after her death, Eygi’s family was able to meet with Antony Blinken, then US secretary of state under the Biden administration.
Recounting the conversation, Ali said: “When we met with Blinken, he said, ‘We’re waiting for Israel to finish up (its investigation), and all the details that you’re asking for should be in that report.’ We asked, ‘Can you provide a deadline? What are you doing to get that report?’”
By then, US demands for answers from Tel Aviv had stalled. “It was a lot of, ‘Well, we’ve got to wait for Israel.’ The only tangible action has been letters sent by US lawmakers to the State Department, but those have yielded no results,” Ali said.
An ardent ally of human rights
Eygi was born in Antalya, a province in southern Türkiye, and grew up in Seattle, where she studied psychology and Middle Eastern languages and cultures at the University of Washington.
An advocate for human rights, she was an activist and a volunteer with the International Solidarity Movement (ISM), a Palestinian-led organization advocating non-violent resistance to Israeli occupation. “I’m driven by a passion for making a positive impact,” she had written on her LinkedIn profile.
Describing his deceased partner, Ali said: “I admired her uncompromising adherence to her principles like justice, compassion, and hope. Where most would say it’s pointless, she would be quick to emphasize our collective power to change even the most hopeless situations.”
In a journal entry she wrote last June before joining the protests, she reflected: “I think about all the lives lost in Gaza due to this genocide that the country I live in, and am a citizen of, actively supports. I think about how people have become so desensitized to witnessing this suffering. I feel like a part of me is suffering.”
Mounting scrutiny on Israel’s investigation
The ISM has rebuffed Israel’s initial report that it had “responded with fire toward a main instigator of violent activity who hurled rocks at the forces and posed a threat to them” in Beita.
The organization maintains that Eygi, who was working as a volunteer observer, was directly targeted by Israeli forces, and denied that any rocks had been thrown.
A report by The Washington Post has also revealed that Aysenur was shot more than 30 minutes after clashes had ended, with protesters had moved over 200 yards away.
In a letter to Blinken earlier this month, US Senator Peter Welch and eight other members of Congress called attention to these discrepancies with the Israeli account, noting that it was “based entirely on information provided by” Israeli soldiers.
In their letter, the lawmakers listed seven questions to the State Department, including whether there is any evidence that Eygi posed a threat to the soldier, whether the soldier intended to target her, and whether the Justice Department had been instructed to launch its own investigation.
They requested answers by Jan. 14, but none were publicly provided.
Humanity amid advocacy
Ali compared Aysenur’s case to Rachel Corrie, a 23-year-old American activist killed in 2003 by an Israeli military bulldozer while protecting a Palestinian home.
“It’s heartbreaking, 10 years later, her family got a letter from Blinken repeating the same things he told us,” Ali said. Reflecting on the delays, he added, “We’re expecting it to take decades, if not more.”
While Aysenur’s activism has inspired many, Ali highlighted the importance of acknowledging her humanity.
“She was so well-read and knowledgeable about so many things but ultimately understood that no single person, movement, or ideology had all the answers … she was a revolutionary,” he said.
“She made mistakes, she was goofy, she was human. She was just like any other 26-year-old.”
Ali added, “Not having her here affects people deeply. It affects me, it affects her family. We’re experiencing something so difficult, and it hurts so much.”
Reflecting on her strength, he shared, “One of her most admirable contradictions was the responsibility she felt to hold others’ pain. She was the most interesting person I’ve ever known.”
“I’ve heard so many describe her as an ‘old soul’ despite her young age. Indeed, her 26-year journey had quickly given her twice that much life experience — for better or worse.”
Ali recalled being awestruck during their second meeting as Aysenur recounted her 2019 travels to Australia, Indonesia, Myanmar, and Türkiye, where she volunteered tirelessly. He also reflected on the challenges of balancing grief with efforts to find justice for his wife.
“Ideally, this would be automatic. We wouldn’t have to spend every day emailing or talking to people just to get this basic thing happening, all while we’re trying to grieve.”
“That cowardly soldier not only killed Aysenur but a long line of revolutionaries whom she would have nurtured to be strong, just, and passionate like her,” said her husband.
He described Eygi’s legacy as a powerful call to action for justice and accountability. “Her blood soaks the roots of that olive tree, never to run through the veins of her own daughter or granddaughter.”
“She is alive in anyone who uncompromisingly stands for justice and believes a better world is possible.”
Today, Ali endeavors to keep the memory of his wife alive in daily acts os kindness. “I choose to honor her by being just, compassionate, and living with integrity like she did.”
The path forward
As the Trump administration takes office, Ali expressed cautious hope for progress but acknowledged the uncertainty.
“It’s really uncertain. Trump is a wild card, but I hope he can understand that any American life, especially someone like Aysenur, deserves justice. He’s spoken a lot about putting America first, and I hope he can follow through in this case, rather than being deferential to Israel,” Ali said.
However, Ali emphasized that accountability requires more than a change in administration.
“The solution is simple: hold Israel accountable. No country should be above the laws agreed upon by the nations of the world,” he stressed.
“Aysenur was shot in the head for doing nothing. Rachel Corrie was gruesomely killed by a bulldozer. It’s not political or complicated — it’s about implementing the laws we’ve already established.”
He also called for greater public engagement in driving change. “A lot of people feel bad about what’s happening. They think, ‘Oh man, I wish that wasn’t happening.’ But that’s where it stops, the feeling stops,” said Ali.
He urged people to push beyond their reluctance and recognize how inaction enables oppression.
“The reluctance, the inconvenience of being actively against something like this, like a genocide, is by design. They want you to be inconvenienced,” Ali explained.
Despite the hardship, he emphasized Aysenur’s unwavering commitment. “She wouldn’t avoid doing what she knew was right,” said Ali.
