The White House says it is "deeply disturbed" after an American activist was shot dead, reportedly by Israeli soldiers, during a protest in the occupied West Bank.
Protesters say Aysenur Ezgi Eygi was shot in the head in a village in the northern West Bank on Friday, local time.
She was taking part in a demonstration against the establishment of a nearby Jewish settlement — one of many considered illegal under international law.
The 26-year-old was from Seattle and had recently graduated from the University of Washington. She was born in Türkiye and held dual US-Turkish citizenship.
The Turkish foreign ministry called her death a "murder committed by the Netanyahu government".
White House national security spokesman Sean Savett said the US had asked Israel to investigate and provide more information.
"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," he said.
The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said its troops had fired towards a protester who was throwing rocks.
"The forces responded with fire toward a main instigator of violent activity who hurled rocks at the forces and posed a threat to them," an IDF spokesperson told the ABC.
"The IDF is looking into reports that a foreign national was killed as a result of shots fired in the area. The details of the incident and the circumstances in which she was hit are under review."
But witnesses said IDF soldiers fired at activists from the roof of a nearby building after earlier clashes had subsided.
Ms Eygi was volunteering with the International Solidarity Movement (ISM), a pro-Palestinian group opposed to the Israeli occupation.
In a statement, ISM said the protest "primarily involved men and children praying", but Israeli forces also fired at "international human rights activists who were observing the demonstration".
One protester, Jonathan Pollak, told the Associated Press the shooting happened shortly after dozens of Palestinians and international activists held a communal prayer on a hillside near the town of Beita.
He said clashes broke out after soldiers surrounded the group, with Palestinians throwing stones and troops firing tear gas and live ammunition.
After the clashes subsided, he said, he saw two soldiers standing on the roof of a nearby home train a gun in the group's direction and shoot at them. He then saw Ms Eygi lying on the ground, next to an olive tree, bleeding to death".
Another ISM volunteer, Mariam Dag, also said she saw an Israeli soldier on a rooftop. She heard two gunshots and saw Ms Eygi had been shot in the head.
"The shots were coming from the direction of the army. They were not coming from anywhere else," Ms Dag said.
She said Ms Eygi had arrived in the West Bank on Tuesday.
US President Joe Biden was asked about the shooting by reporters travelling with him in Detroit.
"I need more information," he said. "That's why I was late coming down [from Air Force One], because I was on the phone, talking to my team. But I'll have more information later."
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan wrote on social media, in Turkish, to "condemn Israel's barbaric intervention against a civilian protest against the occupation in the West Bank, and pray to God to have mercy on our citizen Aysenur Ezgi Eygi, who lost her life in the attack".
University of Washington president Ana Mari Cauce said Ms Eygi had been "a peer mentor in psychology who helped welcome new students to the department and provided a positive influence in their lives".
"This is the second time over the past year that violence in the region has taken the life of a member of our UW community and I again join with our government and so many who are working and calling for a ceasefire and resolution to the crisis," Ms Cauce said in a statement.
Israeli military seemingly withdraws from Jenin
News of the woman's death came as the IDF seemingly withdrew from three refugee camps in Jenin, a city in the West Bank, following one of the biggest security operations in the locality in months.
Thousands of residents were displaced from their homes during the nine-day operation, during which IDF troops exchanged fire with factions including Hamas, Islamic Jihad and Fatah.
It marked the deadliest operation in the West Bank since October 7, 2023.
"When they entered, they used bulldozers and began destroying everything. They left nothing," said Jenin resident Samaher Abu Nassa.
Troops were pulled out of the Tulkarem camp by Friday morning and had left Al-Faraa earlier, but the Israeli military suggested in a statement that the operation was not yet over.
"Israeli security forces are continuing to act in order to achieve the objectives of the counterterrorism operation," the IDF said in a statement.
Water and electricity services remain cut and around 20 kilometres of roadway was dug up by Israeli bulldozers, a tactic the IDF said was aimed at neutralising roadside bombs but which has ripped up much of the centre of the city.
A statement from the IDF said 30 explosives planted under the roads had been dismantled.
"They've set us back 60 years," Tulkarem camp resident Ziad Abu Tahoun said.
Families were also confined to their homes and ambulances evacuating the wounded were slowed on their way to nearby hospitals as Israeli soldiers searched for militants.
The Palestinian foreign ministry accused the IDF of transferring the tactics used to level the Gaza Strip into the West Bank.
The Israeli military said the operation was aimed at thwarting Iranian-backed militant groups planning attacks on Israeli civilians.
It said troops had killed 14 militant fighters during the operation, including the local commander of Hamas in Jenin.
Forces also arrested 30 suspects and confiscated weapons and dismantled infrastructure including an underground weapons storage depot underneath a mosque and an explosives workshop, according to the IDF statement.
Funeral processions for people killed during the fighting attracted thousands of people on Friday.
West Bank casualties included 16-year-old girl
At least 21 of the 39 Palestinians killed during the West Bank operation were killed in Jenin, according to local health officials.
Many were claimed as members by the armed factions but a number were uninvolved civilians, including a 16-year-old girl, apparently shot by a sniper while looking out of the window.
While the Israeli military's main focus over most of the past year has been in Gaza, the West Bank has seen a recent surge in violence.
More than 680 Palestinians have been killed in the West Bank and East Jerusalem, according to Palestinian health ministry figures.
Many have been armed fighters but others have been youths throwing stones at protests or civilians with no involvement in the violence.
In the same period, dozens of Israeli civilians have been killed in attacks by Palestinians or in rocket and missile attacks from the Iranian-backed Hezbollah in southern Lebanon.
The current war in Gaza began when Hamas militants staged a surprise attack on Israel on October 7, 2023, killing around 1,200 people.
Israel's retaliatory offensive has killed more than 40,000 Palestinians, according to local health officials.
Israel has been under increasing pressure from the United States and other allies to reach a cease-fire deal in Gaza.
Hamas has offered to release all hostages in return for an end to the war, the complete withdrawal of Israeli forces and the release of a large number of Palestinian prisoners — broadly the terms called for under an outline for a deal put forward by Mr Biden in July.
The militant group has accused Israel of dragging out months of negotiations by issuing new demands, including for lasting Israeli control over both Philadelphi corridor and a second corridor running across Gaza.
Meanwhile, the International Criminal Court (ICC) said on Friday it had terminated proceedings against late Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh following his death in July.
The ICC is currently weighing the request for arrest warrants against Israeli and Hamas leaders that was made earlier this year.
ABC/AP/Reuters
