Blinken calls for ‘fundamental changes’ after American woman killed in West Bank

Secretary of State Antony Blinken called for “fundamental changes” Tuesday, after Israeli forces say they accidentally killed a Turkish American woman during an anti-settlement protest in the West Bank last week.

Blinken said the death of Aysenur Ezgi Eygi was “unprovoked and unjustified” and that “no one should be shot and killed for attending a protest.”

“No one should have to put their life at risk just for freely expressing their views,” he said during a press conference in London. “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.”

The secretary of state added that Israeli forces have long used violence or looked “the other way” when Israeli settlers have used violence in the West Bank against Palestinians.

“It’s not acceptable, it has to change,” he continued. “And we’ll be making that clear to the senior most members of the Israeli government.”

The Israeli military said in a release Tuesday that an initial inquiry from military commanders indicates Eygi was likely killed by unintentional fire at the protest in the Beita Junction of the West Bank on Friday.

“The inquiry found that it is highly likely that she was hit indirectly and unintentionally by [Israeli military] fire which was not aimed at her, but aimed at the key instigator of the riot,” the military said. “The incident took place during a violent riot in which dozens of Palestinian suspects burned tires and hurled rocks toward security forces at the Beita Junction.”

Israel’s Military Police Criminal Investigation Division is still investigating the incident, and a final report will be submitted to the Military Advocate General’s Corps.

Eygi, a volunteer with the International Solidarity Movement (ISM), was attending a weekly protest against Israeli settlements in the West Bank.

ISM claimed in a press release last week that protesters were primarily praying when Israeli forces opened fire, first with tear gas and then with live ammunition. The group says the protests have been subdued lately because Israel has increased its aggression in recent months.

Blinken said Tuesday that the U.S. was still looking into the incident and the results of the Israeli investigation.

“But even on an initial read and even accepting it at face value,” he added, “it’s clear that there are serious issues that need to be dealt with, and we will insist they will be dealt with.”