In Honor of Ayşenur Ezgi Eygi and International Struggle
by Economics for Everyone
Endorsed by: PASS and RCF
From the Pacific Northwest to Palestine, the world mourns the tragic killing of Ayşenur Ezgi Eygi. Ayşenur was protesting against an illegal Israeli settlement in the occupied West Bank when Israeli troops opened fire upon demonstrators. During a memorial service for Ayşenur that took place in the city of Nablus, a civil serviceman said “when an international is martyred, their blood mixes with ours. We are grateful that the people of the world have not abandoned us to struggle alone.” When Israeli snipers fatally shot Ayşenur on September 6th, 2024, she became the 18th demonstrator killed in the town of Beita since 2021.
On September 19, 2024, Economics for Everyone (E4E) hosted Murder on Stolen Land: Ayşenur Ezgi Eygi and the Struggle Against Israeli Occupation in downtown Olympia, WA. Over 75 people showed up to pay tribute to our fallen comrade and listen to an educational panel about the cause she died fighting for.
The community gathering took place at Moving Parts Studio, which was decorated with Palestinian flags and featured an altar to honor Ayşenur. In addition to E4E, endorsing organizations Palestine Action of the South Sound (PASS) and the Rachel Corrie Foundation (RCF), tabled at the event. After requesting a moment of silence, the moderator introduced the panelists: Rose Y, Imad Ahmad, and Steve Niva.
Rose Y, a peace activist who was in the West Bank alongside Ayşenur, spoke first. She began by outlining her trip and volunteership with the International Solidarity Movement (ISM). The two met on Sunday, September 1st, in Jerusalem. Rose called Ayşenur “welcoming” and explained the joint training they received as well as the ISM’s guiding principles and larger mission. Among them, is the organization's commitment to “documenting and reporting to international media about daily life under apartheid and countless human rights and international law violations by the Israeli military and settlers.” Rather than taking the lead themselves, the ISM operates under Palestinian leadership and practices non-violent direct action. Rose made it clear however that the organization does not oppose militancy. Despite the ISM’s commitment to nonviolence as a tactic, Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) have said “they are at war with ISM.”
A positive COVID test prevented Rose from joining Ayşenur at the weekly demonstration at Beita that Friday, September 6th morning. Rose’s last words to Ayşenur were something along the lines of, ‘stay safe.’ The protest began with a Jummah prayer session at 12:30 pm upon a hilltop park adjacent to the illegal Evyatar settlement. Per usual, the only women in attendance were international volunteers. Immediately afterwards, Israeli troops indiscriminately fired tear gas canisters at the crowd. In an act of defiance, some Palestinian boys threw stones at the heavily-armed soldiers. The scene grew quiet. Then, without provocation, Israeli snipers perched upon a nearby rooftop let off shots. The soldiers cheered when they realized that Ayşenur was hit. The “most tragic thing besides her murder,” said Rose, was that this cruelty was the “standard of Israeli operations.” Rose called Ayşenur “a force for liberation.” The townsfolk of Ramallah planted an olive tree in Ayşenur’s name.
Next was Imad Ahmad, a Palestinian-American who has spent extensive time in Beita where his family is from. His grandparents still live there, subjected to the harsh conditions of life under apartheid. He illustrated the obstacles US-based Palestinians like himself face when they travel to the occupied West Bank. They face uncertainty over whether Israeli officials will even let them in, and risk being unjustly arrested. From walls to checkpoints, life under apartheid is intrusive and repressive. Imad mentioned to the audience that he has trouble finding taxicabs willing to drive him to his grandparents’ house. Many drivers refuse to make the trip because of the threat of settler attacks.
Imad Ahmad also recounted the longer history of Beita and its evolution. Until the construction of Evyatar in 2013, Beita was the only Palestinian village without an Israeli settlement. Most of its residents were subsistence farmers who traded goods like olives and hand pressed olive oil with one another. Beita used to be sparsely populated. An aggressive expansion of Israeli settlements across the West Bank, identified by Imad as a calculated “acre-by-acre strategy” by settlers, has changed that. Forcibly displaced Palestinians are being pushed out of their homes and towards the rural municipality.
Despite the violence inflicted by soldiers and settlers, Beita has a long history of struggle against land theft. Palestinians from other villages visit Beita to take part in the protest movement. Imad spoke of his admiration for kids who toss stones at their occupiers, even though they risk being maimed or worse. When soldiers shoot live rounds as a response to kids throwing stones it exacerbates the dehumanization of Palestinians by neglecting to see children as just that, children*. When he told his family he wanted to attend the weekly protests, his grandmother urged him not to but his grandfather’s support of the resistance profoundly impacted Imad’s consciousness. It was clear to everyone at the studio that he is deeply proud to have participated in Beita’s radical tradition.
Imad Ahmad was followed by Steve Niva, a professor at The Evergreen State College. Steve lambasted statements from Israeli spokespeople who have painted Ayşenur’s murder as accidental. “There are no accidents in the West Bank,” said Niva. As he sees it, the entire occupation of the West Bank is illegal and immoral. What is important is that “Ayşenur was invited to be there. The soldiers who killed her, were not.”
"There are no accidents in the West Bank."
He then contextualized Israel’s settler colonial “endgame” in the occupied territories. The focal point of which is to ensure that “Palestinians don’t have a contiguous body of land” needed to form “even a minimal state.” Israel’s desire to annex the West Bank has a clear historical antecedent in apartheid South Africa. It comes as no surprise that Israel sold armaments to the South African regime and that “former Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon was a known fan of Bantustans,” and once expressed that “the Bantustan [a segregated ethnic enclave] model was the most appropriate for Palestine.” Steve hammered the connection home by urging the audience to consider that “lots of colonial regimes end with global sanctions.” It was a strong reminder that the Boycott, Divestment, Sanctions (BDS) movement for Palestine was inspired by the South African anti-apartheid movement.
During a White House press briefing earlier this year, President Biden said “If you harm an American, we will respond.” But martyrs like Ayşenur Ezgi Eygi, journalist Shireen Abu Akleh (killed in 2022), and fellow ISM volunteer Rachel Corrie (killed in 2003) dispel the notion that a US Passport can protect you from Israeli state violence. At the time of writing, Biden’s only ‘response’ to the murder of Ayşenur has been to call on the Israeli military to investigate itself. Ayşenur’s family wants Washington to conduct an independent investigation and over a hundred US lawmakers have signed on to a petition demanding the same. This can only happen with pressure from below.
Accessible community education events are a crucial component in making a more just world. So is our support for BDS. But it is clear we need more direct activists like Ayşenur. One thing that stood out during the Q and A was a quote from Rose about the need to escalate.
“We have to be more willing to immerse ourselves in conflict. We have to start risking our comfort .... Peaceful, non-disturbing, easy to ignore protests are not enough.”
Vilifying direct action undermines the potential of mass movement building. The path to liberation lies not only in recognizing the interconnectedness of all forms of oppression but also by truly embracing tactical diversity. Revolutionary progress follows a variety of strategies that overlap and lead to one another.
Demand justice for Ayşenur, demand her killers be held accountable but do not stop there. Creating change requires perseverance and conviction. We should honor her memory by deepening our connection with international struggle. Her spirit lives on.
- International Solidarity Movement “Press Release: Israeli army kills American International Solidarity Movement volunteer during demonstration in Beita, Nablus.” https://palsolidarity.org/. September 6, 2024
- Anthony Loewenstein. The Palestine Laboratory. 2023. Verso Books. 23 May 2023. 122-125BDS Movement.
- “What is BDS?” https://bdsmovement.net/what-is-bds
- Statement from President Joe Biden on U.S. Military Operations in the Middle East. The White House. 02 February 2024. https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/statements-releases/2024/02/02/
- Mehmet Guzel. “Father of Turkish-American activist wants US probe into her killing by Israeli soldiers.” AssociatedPress 12 September 2024. Associated Press (AP). https://apnews.com/article/
- Democracy Now! “100+ U.S. Lawmakers Demand Biden Admin Investigate Israel’s Killing of U.S. Activist Ayşenur Eygi.” Democracy Now! Headlines. 27 September 2024. https://www.democracynow.org/2024/9/27/headlines/
