Live blog: Turkish activist shot on Israeli politicians' orders — Palestine

Friday, September 6, 2024

1905 GMT — The Palestinian Foreign Ministry has said the killing of a Turkish-American activist by the Israeli army in the northern occupied West Bank was carried out on the orders of Israeli politicians.

Aysenur Ezgi Eygi, a Turkish-American peace activist, was shot dead by Israeli forces on Friday during a protest against illegal Israeli settlements in the town of Beita, near Nablus city in the northern occupied West Bank.

In a statement, the Foreign Ministry called Aysenur's killing "an integral part of the crimes committed by the Israeli occupation against the Palestinian people."

It added that such a crime is "a direct outcome of the implementation of the instructions" of Israeli politicians with the aim of killing Palestinians and solidarity activists.

The ministry held the Israeli government fully responsible for the crime that confirms its predetermined plans to escalate the situation to cover its colonial projects across the occupied territories.

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1825 GMT — Israeli army investigating death of foreign national in West Bank

The Israeli army has said it is investigating reports of the death of a foreign national in the village of Beita, in the northern occupied West Bank.

1756 GMT — US Muslim group urges DoJ to probe Israeli killing of Turkish-American activist

A Muslim American advocacy group has asked the US Department of Justice to investigate the Israeli killing of a Turkish-American activist in the northern occupied West Bank.

"I write to request that the Justice Department investigate and prosecute the Israeli officials, soldiers, and settlers responsible for committing violent crimes against Palestinian-Americans, including slain journalist Shireen Abu Akleh and peace activist Aysenur Ezgi Eygi, who was shot in the head by Israeli soldiers today in the Occupied West Bank," Robert S. McCaw, director of the Government Affairs Department of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), said in a letter.

1726 GMT — Killing of Turkish-American, not an isolated incident: Israeli activist

The killing of a Turkish-American activist by the Israeli army in the northern occupied West Bank is not an "isolated incident," as Israeli forces have killed nearly one-and-a-half dozen rights activists in recent years, said an eyewitness who saw the killing of Aysenur Ezgi earlier.

A Turkish-American activist Aysenur Ezgi Eygi was shot dead by Israeli forces on Friday during a protest against illegal Israeli settlements in the town of Beita in the Nablus district of the occupied West Bank.

Jonathan Pollack, an eyewitness to the murder and an Israeli activist who has participated in protests against illegal Israeli settlements, told Anadolu about the events surrounding the killing of 26-year-old Eygi by Israeli soldiers.

1715 GMT — US VP candidate Walz supports Gaza protests

Vice presidential candidate Tim Walz has said that those protesting American support for Israel's war in Gaza are doing so for “all the right reasons," as the Democratic ticket looks to balance its support for Israel with the humanitarian plight of civilians in the war-torn enclave.

Walz said the Oct. 7 attack by Hamas that touched off the war, was “a horrific act of violence against the people of Israel. They certainly have the right to defend themselves.”

But, he also said that “we can’t allow what’s happened in Gaza to happen. The Palestinian people have every right to life and liberty themselves.”

1710 GMT — UN wants 'full probe' into Israel's killing of Turkish activist

The UN has called for a "full investigation" and accountability for the killing of a Turkish-American human rights activist by the Israeli army in the northern occupied West Bank.

In response to Anadolu's question on whether the UN denounces the killing of the activist, the UN spokesman Stephane Dujarric at a news conference said: "I can tell you that we would want to see a full investigation of the circumstances and that people should be held accountable."

"Again, civilians must be must be protected at all times," he added.

1701 GMT — Erdogan condemns Israeli raid in occupied West Bank

Türkiye's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has condemned "Israel's barbaric intervention" which led to the death of a Turkish-American dual national activist in the occupied West Bank.

"I condemn Israel's barbaric intervention against a demonstration against the occupation in the West Bank and I pray for God's mercy for our citizen Aysenur Ezgi Eygi, who lost her life in the attack," he wrote on X.

1656 GMT — Nablus governor condemns activist's killing

Nablus Governor Ghassan Daghlas has strongly condemned the killing of Turkish-American activist Aysenur Ezgi Eygi, who was shot in the head by Israeli soldiers in Nablus.

In a statement to Anadolu, Daghlas expressed his outrage, saying: "Israel is killing American activists in Palestine with weapons provided by the United States."

He emphasised that Israel targets foreigners, including Americans, who show solidarity with Palestine. Daghlas further stated: "The Israeli occupying government is fully responsible for this crime and all other incidents on Palestinian soil."

1650 GMT — Far-right minister Ben-Gvir kicked out of Tel Aviv beach

A group of Israelis have kicked out their far-right Minister of National Security Itamar Ben-Gvir from a beach in the capital Tel Aviv, calling him "a murderer."

Israeli media posted several footages on their websites showing Ben-Gvir and his family members arriving at a beach when some beachgoers yelled at him.

"You are a murderer, you are a terrorist, and because of you, the hostages are dying in Gaza; how dare you walk on the beach?" an Israeli was seen shouting at him.

1629 GMT — War crimes court drops case against Hamas leader Haniyeh

The International Criminal Court (ICC) has said it had terminated proceedings against late Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh following his death in July.

The ICC is currently weighing a request for arrest warrants against Israeli and Hamas leaders made earlier this year.

In May ICC chief prosecutor Karim Khan asked for arrest warrants for Hamas leaders, saying there were reasonable grounds to suspect that Yahya Sinwar, military chief Mohammed Al-Masri and Haniyeh, bore criminal responsibility for alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity.

Judges said their decision to terminate proceedings followed the withdrawal of the prosecution request for a warrant for Haniyeh earlier this month.

1602 GMT — White House 'deeply disturbed' by activist's killing

The White House has said that it is "deeply disturbed" by the fatal shooting of Turkish-American peace activist Aysenur Ezgi Eygi, 26, in the occupied West Bank, and has formally requested Israel to investigate her death.

"We are deeply disturbed by the tragic death of an American citizen, Aysenur Ezgi Eygi, today in the West Bank and our hearts go out to her family and loved ones," National Security Council spokesperson Sean Savett said in a statement to Anadolu.

"We have reached out to the Government of Israel to ask for more information and request an investigation into the incident," he added.

1550 GMT — Palestine condemns Turkish-American activist's killing

Palestine has strongly condemned the killing of Turkish-American activist Aysenur Ezgi Eygi by the Israeli army as she was joining a peaceful anti-settlement rally in the northern occupied West Bank, according to separate statements by Palestinian groups.

"Another crime added to the series of crimes committed daily by the occupation forces, which require that their perpetrators be held accountable in international courts," said Hussein al-Sheikh, the secretary of the Executive Committee of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO), in a statement on his X account.

Hamas, for its part, described her killing as "a heinous crime," and called it "an extension of the occupation's deliberate crimes against foreign solidarity activists ."

1541 GMT — US Muslim group condemns activist's killing in West Bank

A Muslim American advocacy group has condemned the killing of a Turkish-American activist by the Israeli army in the northern occupied West Bank.

"We strongly condemn the Israeli apartheid government for murdering American citizen Aysenur Ezgi Eygi while she peacefully protested its human right abuses in the occupied West Bank," Edward Ahmed Mitchell, National Deputy Director of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), told Anadolu.

"The Biden administration must condemn this brazen murder of an American citizen, prosecute the Israelis responsible, and stop sending military aid to Netanyahu's racist, murderous government," Mitchell added.

1500 GMT — Israel kills 27 more, including children, in strikes on Gaza

Israeli military strikes have killed at least 27 more Palestinians across Gaza, medics said, as health officials resumed vaccination of tens of thousands more children in the enclave against polio.

In Nuseirat, one of the territory's eight historic refugee camps, an Israeli air strike killed two women and two children, while eight other people were killed in two other air strikes in Gaza City, the medics said.

The rest were killed in subsequent strikes across the enclave, they added.

1447 GMT — Türkiye condemns Israeli killing of Turkish human rights activist

Türkiye has condemned the "murder" of Turkish citizen and human rights activist Aysenur Ezgi Eygi by "Israeli occupation soldiers" in the occupied West Bank city of Nablus.

"We condemn this murder committed by the Netanyahu government," the Turkish Foreign Ministry said in a statement.

"Israeli authorities and their unconditional supporters will inevitably be held accountable before international courts," the statement added.

Eygi also held US citizenship.

1444 GMT — US seeks more info on Turkish-American activist’s ‘tragic death’

The US on Friday said it is gathering more information about the circumstances of the "tragic death" of Turkish-American activist Aysenur Ezgi Eygi in the occupied West Bank.

"We are aware of the tragic death of an American citizen, Aysenur Eygi, today in the West Bank. We offer our deepest condolences to her fa mily and loved ones," State Department spokesman Matthew Miller told Anadolu in an emailed statement.

"We are urgently gathering more information about the circumstances of her death, and will have more to say as we learn more. We have no higher priority than the safety and security of American citizens," he added.

1409 GMT — Netanyahu prioritises survival over Hamas response: Israeli analyst

Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu currently has no intention of reaching an agreement with Hamas as his primary consideration is his political survival, which means that more and more Palestinians will continue to perish in the conflict, says an Israeli military analyst.

Amos Harel stated in his article published on Friday in the daily Haaretz: “Practically speaking, there is almost no contradiction between the message to the Israeli public and the message to the Qataris, because the bottom line … is that he appears to have no intention of reaching an agreement at this time.”

Harel highlighted that Netanyahu's “major consideration is his political survival.”

1309 GMT — Illegal Israeli settlers raid homes, set vehicles on fire in West Bank

Illegal Israeli settlers backed by the military raided homes and detained a Palestinian family in Jericho, while in Ramallah, the settlers set five Palestinian vehicles ablaze, further escalating tensions in the occupied West Bank.

In Jericho, Hassan Mleihat, the general supervisor of the Al-Baydar Organization for the Defense of Bedouin Rights, reported that illegal settlers stormed the Arab al-Mleihat community in the Al-Marajat area near Jericho.

Under the protection of Israeli forces, they raided the homes of the Ka’abneh family, detaining members including Mohammed, Hamza, and Farhat Ka’abneh.

Mleihat stated that the illegal settlers surrounded the homes and held the family hostage inside, while the Israeli army prevented local residents from reaching the area. "The illegal settlers are aiming to take control of the site and force the residents to leave," he said.

1228 GMT — Hamas releases video of Israeli-American hostage, calls for prisoner swap

Hamas' military wing, the Qassam Brigades, has released a video showing an Israeli-American hostage appealing to the US president and the secretary of state to stop the war on Gaza and help secure his release through a prisoner exchange deal.

"I am asking you, Mr. President Joe Biden and Antony Blinken and all my fellow Americans, citizens – to do everything you can stop the war, stop this madness, and to bring me home now," Hersh Goldberg-Polin said in his final message.

The date of the recording was not provided. Goldberg-Polin was later killed in Israeli airstrikes.

1225 GMT — American activist shot dead by Israeli army in West Bank

An American activist was shot dead by Israeli forces during a protest against illegal Israeli settlements in the town of Beita in the Nablus district of the occupied West Bank.

Fouad Nafaa, the director of Rafidia Hospital, told Anadolu that the woman, who held US citizenship, arrived at the hospital with a gunshot wound to the head.

"We attempted to revive her, but she succumbed to her injuries," Nafaa stated.

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1218 GMT — ICC prosecutor defends Israeli PM Netanyahu arrest warrants

The chief prosecutor of the International Criminal Court has defended arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, saying that justice must be seen to be done.

In an interview with BBC, Karim Khan said that it was important to show the court would hold all nations to the same standard in relation to alleged war crimes, welcoming the UK government's decision to drop its opposition to the arrest warrants.

In July, the British government reversed its opposition to the ICC seeking an arrest warrant against Netanyahu.

1202 GMT — Ex-Israeli official urges northern Gaza evacuation, aid halt

Former Israeli National Security Council head Meir Ben-Shabbat has urged the evacuation of northern Gaza and the suspension of humanitarian aid, advocating for the area to be declared a closed military zone.

In a statement, Ben-Shabbat, who also chairs the Misgav Institute for National Security and Zionist Strategy, said that “remaining in the Philadelphi Corridor between Gaza and Egypt is not enough. We must also evacuate northern Gaza and declare it a closed military zone, stopping the entry of humanitarian aid."

Ben-Shabbat suggested that the US administration under President Joe Biden should support this stance, believing it could advance negotiations on the release of hostages.

He argued that to achieve Israel's war objectives, "control over humanitarian aid entering Gaza must be removed from Hamas. This is its lifeline and the main way it maintains control on the ground."

1121 GMT — Poll: Nearly half of Israelis back Philadelphi Corridor withdrawal for hostage deal

A recent poll has found that 48 percent of Israelis would support withdrawing from the Philadelphi Corridor along the Gaza-Egypt border in exchange for a hostage swap deal with Hamas.

Conducted by the Lazar Institute and reported by Maariv newspaper, the survey polled 506 Israelis, with a margin of error of 4.4 percent. It showed that while nearly half of respondents were open to relinquishing control of the corridor, 37 percent opposed such a move, and 15 percent remained undecided.

The survey also gauged political preferences, revealing that Netanyahu remains a preferred choice for prime minister, though his popularity has fluctuated compared to other political figures. In a head-to-head matchup with Benny Gantz of the National Unity party, Netanyahu garnered 42 percent support, while Gantz received 40 percent, with 18 percent of respondents undecided.

1109 GMT — Israeli officials sceptical of new Gaza ceasefire proposal

Israeli officials have voiced pessimism about an expected ceasefire proposal designed to bridge the gap between Israel and Hamas, as part of ongoing negotiations to secure a hostage exchange and end the conflict in Gaza.

According to Israel's Public Broadcasting Corporation, government sources indicated that the proposal, expected to be unveiled by the end of the week, is unlikely to meet the demands of either side.

"The forthcoming proposal will not be acceptable to both sides,” said officials who spoke on condition of anonymity. Despite efforts to revive stalled negotiations, insiders suggest there has been little movement in changing the entrenched positions of both Israel and Hamas.

0948 GMT — Military approach not the solution in Gaza: German FM

German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock has said that a military approach alone was not the solution to Israel's Gaza war.

"The past weekend has dramatically demonstrated that a purely military approach is no solution to the situation in Gaza," she told reporters after meeting with her Israeli counterpart Israel Katz in the coastal Israeli city of Tel Aviv.

Baerbock was referring to the recovery of six more dead hostages announced on Sunday.

0853 GMT — 160,000 children vaccinated against polio in southern Gaza: UN

The UN agency for Palestinian refugees (UNRWA) has announced that its teams vaccinated more than 160,000 children on Thursday, the first day of the second phase of a polio vaccination campaign in southern Gaza.

“Thousands of families went to health facilities to receive vaccines from UNRWA medical teams,” the UN agency said on X.

“Over 160,000 children were reached on the first day of the polio vaccination campaign in Gaza southern areas yesterday,” it added.

The UN agency said that it will continue vaccinating “as many children as possible” on Friday.

0806 GMT — Israel kills 8 Palestinians, destroys buildings in Gaza

At least eight Palestinians were killed in air strikes by Israeli warplanes targeting two homes in Gaza City on late Thursday and early Friday, according to local sources.

Medical sources at the al-Ahli Baptist Hospital told Anadolu that six bodies were brought to the hospital after an Israeli air strike hit a house in the Zeitoun neighbourhood.

Palestinian medics also reported the death of a woman and her daughter in an Israeli strike that targeted a house in the Tel al-Hawa neighbourhood, west of Gaza City.

0548 GMT — Israeli artillery strikes kill 6, leave 5 wounded in Gaza City

Israel has shelled various parts of Gaza City, killing many civilians, including women and children, according to WAFA news agency.

Six people were killed and five others were severely wounded when shelling took place near Al Badr Mosque in the Zeitoun neighbourhood, southeast of Gaza, according to Palestinian health sources.

The victims of the attack were Ahmed Nayef Radi, Nayef Ahmed Radi, Naila Ahmed Radi, Alaa Nazir al Naffar, Naila Ali Radi and Shatha Nayef Radi. The injured were sent to al-Ahli Arab Hospital in Gaza.

0552 GMT — Israeli forces assault a Palestinian youth in Ramallah

Israeli forces assaulted a young man in the village of Deir Abu Mashal, north of Ramallah, according to the Palestinian WAFA news agency.

The attack took place in the village of Shuqba at a temporary checkpoint set up by Israeli forces, according to local sources.

The attack by the Israeli soldiers on Bilal Rabah Dar Atta resulted in his fingers being broken. He was immediately transported to a local hospital for treatment.

0410 GMT — Israeli forces withdraw from Jenin after 10 days of aggression

Israeli forces have withdrawn from the city of Jenin and a refugee camp there, following a 10-day episode of "violent aggression", Palestine's official news agency (WAFA) said.

Twenty-one people were killed in the city and camp, the Palestinian health ministry said in a statement.

A Reuters witness said the Israeli forces left behind extensive damage to infrastructure.

In a statement on Facebook, the Palestinian foreign ministry accused Israel of transferring to the occupied West Bank its brutal destruction and devastation in Gaza, as evidenced by the situation in the cities of Jenin and Tulkarem, and the refugee camps there.

1951 GMT — Israelis rally against Netanyahu with mock coffins amid Gaza war

Hundreds of Israelis have marched silently through the streets of Tel Aviv carrying 27 mock coffins to represent the 27 captives whose bodies were recovered by the Israeli military during the past nearly 11 months of Israeli carnage in besieged Gaza.

The protesters marched through major streets in Tel Aviv at night, solemnly striking a bell as the flag-draped coffins were slowly brought through the streets. The country is reeling from the discovery of the bodies of six Israeli captives, who Hamas says were killed in indiscriminate Israeli strikes.

"Benjamin Netanyahu, the Prime Minister, sentenced Carmel, my cousin, to death, her and all the hostages," said Gil Dickmann, the cousin of Carmel Gat, one of six hostages killed and whose body was recovered.

"She was abandoned to her death by the government, could have brought her back, 327 days she was there, in Gaza, in captivity, there were 327 opportunities to bring her back and every single one was missed."

In angry public statements, hostage families have accused Netanyahu of blocking a deal and potentially sacrificing their loved ones' lives for the sake of his political career.

2314 GMT — Blinken says incumbent on Hamas, Israel to remove gaps in truce deal

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken has said it was incumbent on both Israel and Hamas to say yes on remaining issues to reach a Gaza ceasefire deal even as hawkish Israeli PM Netanyahu again dismissed US claims that a deal was imminent.

"Based on what I have seen, 90% is agreed but there are a few critical issues that remain," including the so-called Philadelphi corridor on the southern edge of the Gaza Strip bordering Egypt, Blinken said at a press briefing in Haiti.

He said there were also some gaps in the agreement in how Israeli hostages and Palestinian prisoners are exchanged.

"I expect in the coming days, we will share with Israel, and they (Qatar and Egypt) will share with Hamas our thoughts, the three of us, on exactly how to resolve remaining outstanding questions," Blinken said, referring to the U.S. and mediators Qatar and Egypt.

Blinken's comments came after Netanyahu said it was "exactly inaccurate" that a breakthrough was imminent.

1951 GMT — Son of prominent jailed fighter among six killed by Israel

Palestinian health officials have said that Israeli strikes in the occupied West Bank killed six people, including the son of a prominent jailed fighter.

Israel said all of those killed were resistance fighters who had been involved in attacks.

A strike overnight in the northern West Bank town of Tubas killed five people, including Mohammed Zubeidi, the Palestinian Health Ministry said, without saying whether they were civilians or fighters.

His father, Zakaria Zubeidi, was a well-known commander during the second Palestinian intifada (uprising) in the early 2000s and took part in a rare jailbreak in 2021 before being arrested and returned to prison days later.

2209 GMT — Netanyahu gives starkly different take to US' Gaza truce deal

The Biden administration and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu were sharply at odds over prospects of reaching a deal for a Gaza ceasefire and prisoner release, with Netanyahu saying it was "exactly inaccurate" that a breakthrough was close.

"There's not a deal in the making," Netanyahu said in an interview with "Fox and Friends." His public scepticism comes as US officials said they were working on a revised proposal to address remaining disputes between Israeli and Hamas leaders after the weekend discovery of six dead hostages added urgency to the talks.

National security spokesperson John Kirby reiterated that only disagreements on "implementing details" of a ceasefire proposal need to be hammered out.

"I've heard what the prime minister said. I'm not going to get into a back and forth with him in a public setting," Kirby told reporters. "We still believe, though this is incredibly difficult ... if there's compromise, if there's leadership, we can still get there."

2135 GMT — Trump warns US universities over pro-Palestine protests

Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump has told Jewish donors that US universities would lose accreditation and federal support over pro-Palestine protests if he is elected to the White House.

"Colleges will and must end the antisemitic propaganda, or they will lose their accreditation and federal support," Trump said, speaking remotely to a crowd of more than 1,000 Republican Jewish Coalition donors in Las Vegas.

For our live updates from Thursday, September 5, 2024, click here.