A Washington state legislative measure urging the Trump administration to investigate the death of University of Washington graduate Ayşenur Ezgi Eygi stalled after Republicans attached an amendment blaming an activist group for her presence at the protest at the Beita Junction in Samaria, where she was killed.
The original Senate joint memorial described Eygi, a dual U.S.–Turkish citizen raised in Seattle and a recent UW graduate, as an activist who traveled to the Israeli‑occupied West Bank and was “tragically killed at the age of 26 on Sept. 6, 2024, in the West Bank when she was shot and killed while courageously observing the forceful displacement of Palestinians from their homes.”
Eygi was shot and killed by Israeli forces during a demonstration against settlement expansion in Judea and Samaria, internationally referred to as the West Bank. The Israeli Defense Forces stated that she was likely hit unintentionally amid a violent riot, and its internal investigation found no deliberate targeting.
Chris Corry, a Republican Washington state representative, told JNS that when he first read SJM 8014, “it was missing some key components, namely, how do U.S. citizens wind up in at best disputed territories, and at worst an active war zone.”
He identified Eygi’s association with the International Solidarity Movement, an activist group that mobilizes international volunteers to protest alongside Palestinians. Corry cited criticism from the Anti‑Defamation League that ISM’s tactics have at times put volunteers in harm’s way, including the death of activist Rachel Corrie in March 2003.
“The more I dug into it and talked to people, it was clear that this group that got them there has a history of intentionally putting unwitting victims into the line of fire as a way of ‘protest,’” Corry told JNS.
The memorial, introduced by Rebecca Saldaña, a Democratic Washington state senator, and backed by Democratic co-sponsors, asked the federal government to conduct “a transparent, thorough, and independent investigation,” despite the IDF’s findings. It argued that “justice and accountability for the unacceptable death of Ayşenur Ezgi Eygi and other United States citizens abroad require the full attention of the United States government.”
Corry told JNS the more he learned about the “reckless disregard” of ISM, the more he couldn’t “just sit idly by and let this letter go through.” He introduced an amendment clarifying the nature of the activist network to which Eygi was affiliated.
The amendment states that Eygi’s activism “made her an attractive target of the International Solidarity Movement,” which it describes as an organization that “promotes ‘direct action’ tactics and strategically recruits volunteer international activists to act as human shields in active combat zones.”
It further claims the group has collaborated with armed factions and that “individuals associated with the International Solidarity Movement have been convicted in United States federal courts for materially supporting Hamas.”
The amendment seeks a broader federal inquiry, asking the United States to investigate not only the UW graduate’s death but also “the recruitment practices, tactics and operations of the International Solidarity Movement in the United States.”
Corry said there was some concern among the Democrats about how the discussion would play out on the House floor and “decided not to move the letter forward.”
On March 4, the measure was placed on second reading after the House Rules Committee was relieved of further consideration. Corry told JNS that if the Democrats want to reintroduce it, they will have to “come back next year and start that whole process over.”
