By Humeyra Pamuk
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The family of a Turkish-born American human rights activist killed by Israel in the occupied West Bank pleaded with Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Monday for a U.S. probe into her killing but got no promises, the woman’s husband said.
Aysenur Ezgi Eygi, 26, was shot dead on Sept. 6 as she took part in a protest march in the town of Beita against Jewish settlement expansion in the West Bank.
Speaking to reporters after meeting with the top U.S. diplomat, Hamid Ali said Blinken gave no assurances that Washington would carry out its own investigation but urged Eygi’s relatives to wait for Israel to finish its inquiry.
“He was very deferential to the Israelis,” Ali said. “It felt like he was saying his hands were tied and they weren’t able to really do much.”
Neither the U.S. nor Israel has said when the Israeli investigation might be completed, Ali added.
Israel has acknowledged its troops shot Eygi, but says it was an unintentional act during a demonstration that turned violent. Her family believes she was targeted as an activist.
Although Washington has criticized Eygi’s killing and a surge of attacks on Palestinians in the West Bank as Israel wages war on the Palestinian Hamas group in Gaza, the U.S. has announced no major policy change toward Israel.
The International Court of Justice and most countries say Israel’s occupation of Palestinian territories and expansion of Jewish settlements in the West Bank are illegal. Israel denies this, citing historical and biblical ties to the area.
(Reporting by Humeyra Pamuk; Editing by Kevin Liffey)
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