Activist killing: ‘Shots came from the direction of the army, not anywhere else’Here are the accounts of two witnesses who observed the killing of Turkish-American activist Ezgi Eygi, 26, in the occupied West Bank village of Beita:
Jonathan Pollak, an Israeli who was participating in Friday’s protest, said the shooting occurred shortly after dozens of Palestinians and international activists held a communal prayer on a hillside outside the northern town of Beita overlooking the illegal Israeli settlement of Evyatar.''Soldiers surrounded the group as its members prayed and clashes soon broke out with Palestinians throwing stones and soldiers firing tear gas and live ammunition, Pollak said.
The protesters and activists, including Pollak and Ezgi Eygi, retreated from the hill, and the clashes calmed down, he said. He then watched as two soldiers standing on the roof of a nearby home trained a gun in the group’s direction and fired. He saw the flares leave the barrel of the gun when the shots rang out.''
''He said Ezgi Eygi was about 10 or 15 metres (33 to 50ft) behind him when the shots were fired. Pollak then saw her “lying on the ground next to an olive tree, bleeding to death”, he said.
Mariam Dag, another activist at the protest, also said she saw an Israeli soldier on a rooftop. Dag said she then heard the firing of two live rounds. One ricocheted off something metal and hit a Palestinian protester in the leg; the other hit Ezgi Eygi, who had moved back into an olive grove, she said.''
Dag said she ran towards the fallen woman and saw blood coming from her head. “The shots were coming from the direction of the army. They were not coming from anywhere else.”US lawmakers call for accountability in killing of American activistSenator Patty Murray of Washington state condemned the killing of American citizen Aysenur Ezgi Eygi.
“The government of Israel must deliver answers immediately and hold the perpetrators of this killing accountable,” Murray said in a statement.
Post too long. Click here to view the full text.