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Evening Standard
Evening Standard
World
Sami Quadri

Turkey wants international arrest warrants over killing of US-Turkish citizen in West Bank

Turkey has launched an investigation into the killing of a Turkish-American activist who was shot dead during a West Bank protest.

Israel admitted its troops likely fired the fatal shot that killed 26-year-old Aysenur Ezgi Eygi but claimed it wasunintentional.

Turkish authorities said on Thursday they will seek arrests warrants in connection with the death.

Turkey's Foreign Ministry accused Israeli soldiers of "deliberately targeting" Eygi during a "peaceful demonstration".

"We will make every effort to ensure that this crime does not go unpunished," the ministry said.

Israel expressed its "deepest regret" for the death of Eygi, who is from Seattle but also held Turkish citizenship, and said a criminal investigation had been launched.

The acknowledgement drew a strong rebuke from US secretary of state Antony Blinken, who condemned the death as "unprovoked and unjustified" when asked about the Israeli inquiry at a news conference in London. "No one should be shot while attending a protest," he said.

Eygi's body is set to arrive in Turkey on Friday for burial in Didim.

US President Biden and Vice President Harris called the killing "unacceptable", urging Israel to prevent similarincidents.

The incident has sparked diplomatic tension, with Turkey vowing to pursue justice for the slain activist.

Justice Minister Yilmaz Tunc said the Ankara chief prosecutor's office is investigating "those responsible for the martyrdom and murder of our sister Aysenur Ezgi Eygi".

He told reporters that Turkey had evidence regarding the killing and would make international arrest requests.

It comes after Israel released video footage of a Gaza tunnel where it says six hostages were recently killed by Hamas. The video shows a low, narrow passageway deep underground with no bathroom and poor ventilation.

The discovery of the hostages' bodies last month sparked a mass outpouring of anger in Israel, and the release of the new video could add to the pressure on Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu to reach a ceasefiredeal with Hamas to bring the remaining hostages home.

Israeli military spokesperson Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari said the footage of the Gaza tunnel had been shown to the hostages' families, and that it "was very hard for them to see how their loved ones survived inthose conditions".

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