Hundreds attend vigil remembering Seattle woman killed by Israeli military in the West Bank

Hundreds of mourners gathered Wednesday night at Alki Beach to remember a Seattle woman killed by Israeli defense forces last week. University of Washington graduate Ayşenur Eygi, 26, was shot in the head after observing a pro-Palestinian protest in the West Bank on Sept. 6.

Kelsie Nabas, who spoke at the vigil in West Seattle, was a friend of Eygi. She said Eygi had a strong sense of justice and felt a responsibility to act. Nabas described Eygi as a community builder, a dear friend to many, and a lover of horror movies, getting coffee, and going to the beach.

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"I think even being here in this space tonight, a lot of us have been here with her,” she told KUOW. “We've had birthdays here. We've had bonfires here. So I think living in her memory is going to be doing the things that she loved, being at the beach, going on hikes, camping."

Other speakers included young Palestinian-Americans and students who met Eygi at a pro-Palestinian encampment at the University of Washington last spring. The encampment was among numerous demonstrations on college campuses, aimed at pressuring university officials to divest from Israel amid its war in Gaza, sparked by Hamas’s Oct. 7 attack.

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Attendees at the vigil Wednesday, including Marium Khan, came adorned in Keffiyehs, a symbol of solidarity with Palestinians.

"I've met so many people who have similar feelings about her as I do, similar love, and it's been really nice to meet more people who have felt so affected by her in the same way that I have," Khan said.

Khan moved to Seattle from Texas in 2022, and met Eygi soon after. Khan helped Eygi pack for a trip to the Middle East, which included stops in Eygi’s home country, Turkey, and later, the Israeli-occupied West Bank.

Khan helped Eygi decide what she would and wouldn’t take, including a shipment of hand sanitizer and vitamins, and presents for her relatives in Turkey. Eygi was excited to see her family and to protest with Palestinians in the West Bank, Khan said.

“Her whole adult life was dedicated towards liberation of people of peace and freedom for all,” Khan added.

Eygi was known by many at the vigil as a mentor, said Juliette Majid, who graduated with Eygi from the University of Washington in June. Majid organized demonstrations with Eygi at the encampment on campus last spring.

Majid said she texted Eygi a few days before she traveled to the West Bank, where Eygi was volunteering with the nonprofit Palestinian advocacy group International Solidarity Group. Eygi was killed by an Israeli sniper following a protest against Israeli settlements, which the United Nation calls a violation of international law. Israeli government officials said Tuesday that its forces likely “indirectly and unintentionally” killed Eygi.

“We were just talking about how honored she was feeling to be able to go and be this international observer and bear witness, and how motivated she was to come back and have a story to tell and uplift when she came back,” Majid said.

Majid, who has acted as a spokesperson for Eygi’s family, said Eygi’s parents left for Turkey on Tuesday to collect her body. They’re also calling for an independent U.S. investigation into her death, a call echoed by members of Congress, including Washington state Democrats Patty Murray, Pramila Jayapal, Maria Cantwell, and Adam Smith.

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“In the midst of this terrible tragedy, our family has been crossing continents to gather and put our beloved Aysenur to rest. We will always remember Aysenur as the kindhearted, silly, and passionate soul whose face expressed all those qualities,” her family said in a public statement.

“We cannot speak of what happened to those expressions when her temple met a bullet fired by a trained Israeli soldier.”