An American activist killed by Israeli fire is buried in Turkey as Israel strikes Gaza

ISTANBUL, Turkey (AP) — A Turkish-American activist who was killed by Israeli fire in the West Bank was laid to rest on Saturday in her hometown in Turkey with thousands lining the streets and anti-Israeli feelings in the country rising from a conflict that threatens to spread across the region.

Aysenur Ezgi Eygi, a 26-year-old woman from Seattle, was shot dead Sept. 6 by an Israeli soldier during a demonstration against Israeli West Bank settlements, according to an Israeli protester who witnessed the shooting.

Thousands of people lined the streets in the Turkish coastal town of Didim on the Aegean Sea, as Eygi was buried in a coffin draped in a Turkish flag, which was taken from her family home. A portrait of her wearing her graduation gown was propped against the coffin as people paid their respects.

Her body was earlier brought from a hospital to her family home and Didim’s Central Mosque.

Turkey’s condemned the killing and announced it will conduct its own investigation into her death. “We are not going to leave our daughter’s blood on the ground and we demand responsibility and accountability for this murder,” Numan Kurtulmus, the speaker of Turkey’s parliament told mourners at the funeral.

On Friday, an autopsy had been carried out at Izmir Forensic Medicine Institute. Kurtulmus said the examination showed Eygi was hit by a round that struck her in the back of the head below her left ear.

The Israeli military said Tuesday that Eygi was likely shot “indirectly and unintentionally” by Israeli forces.

Her death was condemned by U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken as the United States, Egypt and Qatar push for a cease-fire in the 11-month-long Israel-Hamas war and the release of the remaining hostages held by Hamas. Talks have repeatedly bogged down as Israel and Hamas accuse each other of making new and unacceptable demands.

The war began when Hamas-led fighters killed some 1,200 people, mostly civilians, in an Oct. 7 attack on southern Israel. They abducted another 250 people and are still holding around 100 hostages after releasing most of the rest in exchange for Palestinians imprisoned by Israel during a weeklong cease-fire in November. Around a third of the remaining hostages are believed to be dead.

Israeli airstrikes pounded central and southern Gaza overnight into Saturday, killing at least 14 people.

The strikes in Gaza City hit one home housing 11 people, including three women and four children, and another strike hit a tent in Khan Younis with Palestinians displaced by the Israel-Hamas war, Gaza's Civil Defense said. They followed airstrikes earlier this week that hit a tent camp on Tuesday and a United Nations school sheltering displaced on Wednesday.

The Israeli army on Saturday ordered Palestinians sheltering in the northern neighborhoods of Manshiyeh, Beit Lahia and Sheikh Zayed to evacuate south toward Gaza City. The order came after projectiles were fired from the area, the Israeli army said in a post on X. It remains unclear how many people are sheltering in those areas.

Meanwhile, a campaign to inoculate children in Gaza against polio drew down and the World Health Organization said about 559,000 under the age of 10 have recovered from their first dose, seven out of every eight children the campaign aimed to vaccinate. The second doses are expected to begin later this month as part of an effort in which the WHO said parties had already agreed to.

"As we prepare for the next round in four weeks, we’re hopeful these pauses will hold, because this campaign has clearly shown the world what’s possible when peace is given a chance,” Richard Peeperkorn, WHO’s representative in Gaza and the West Bank, said in a statement on Saturday.

The war has caused vast destruction and displaced around 90% of Gaza’s population of 2.3 million, often multiple times, and plunged the territory into a severe humanitarian crisis. Gaza’s Health Ministry says over 41,000 Palestinians have been killed since the war began. The ministry does not distinguish between civilians and militants in its count, but says women and children make up just over half of the dead. Israel says it has killed more than 17,000 militants in the war.

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Shurafa reported from Deir al-Balah, Gaza Strip. Associated Press writers Samy Magdy in Cairo and Sam Metz in Rabat, Morocco, contributed to this report.

Follow AP’s war coverage at https://apnews.com/hub/israel-hamas-war

The coffin of Aysenur Ezgi Eygi, a 26 year-old Turkish-American activist killed by the Israeli military, is carried during her funeral in Didim, Turkey, Saturday, Sept. 14, 2024,(AP Photo/Khalil Hamra)

Turkish military police carry the coffin of Aysenur Ezgi Eygi, a 26 year-old Turkish-American activist killed by the Israeli military, for the funeral prayer outside the central mosque of Didim, Turkey, Saturday, Sept. 14, 2024,(AP Photo/Khalil Hamra)

A relative of Aysenur Ezgi Eygi, a 26 year-old Turkish-American activist killed by the Israeli military, mourns over her coffin during her funeral in Didim, Turkey, Saturday, Sept. 14, 2024,(AP Photo/Khalil Hamra)

Demonstrators place a Palestinian flag next to a photograph of Aysenur Ezgi Eygi, 26 year-old Turkish-American activist killed by the Israeli military, during a protest in her memory in Istanbul, Turkey, Saturday, Sept. 14, 2024. (AP Photo/Francisco Seco)

A woman holds up a poster that reads: "The Land" during a protest in memory of Aysenur Ezgi Eygi, a 26 year-old Turkish-American activist killed by the Israeli military, in Istanbul, Turkey, Saturday, Sept. 14, 2024. (AP Photo/Francisco Seco)

People hold photographs of Aysenur Ezgi Eygi, 26 year-old Turkish-American activist killed by the Israeli military, as they shout slogans during a protest in her memory in Istanbul, Turkey, Saturday, Sept. 14, 2024. (AP Photo/Francisco Seco)

People hold up photographs of Aysenur Ezgi Eygi, 26 year-old Turkish-American activist killed by the Israeli military, as they shout slogans during a protest in her memory in Istanbul, Turkey, Saturday, Sept. 14, 2024. (AP Photo/Francisco Seco)

A man holds up a photograph of Aysenur Ezgi Eygi, 26 year-old Turkish-American activist killed by the Israeli military, during a protest in her memory in Istanbul, Turkey, Saturday, Sept. 14, 2024. (AP Photo/Francisco Seco)

A woman holds up a photograph of Aysenur Ezgi Eygi, 26 year-old Turkish-American activist killed by the Israeli military, during a protest in her memory in Istanbul, Turkey, Saturday, Sept. 14, 2024. (AP Photo/Francisco Seco)

Relatives mourn the death of Aysenur Ezgi Eygi, a 26 year-old Turkish-American activist killed by the Israeli military, during her funeral in Didim, Turkey, Saturday, Sept. 14, 2024,(AP Photo/Khalil Hamra)

People hold Palestinian flags while attending the funeral of Aysenur Ezgi Eygi, a 26 year-old Turkish-American activist killed by the Israeli military, in Didim, Turkey, Saturday, Sept. 14, 2024,(AP Photo/Khalil Hamra)

Mehmet, the father of Aysenur Ezgi Eygi, a 26 year-old Turkish-American activist killed by the Israeli military, left, attends prayers during his daughter's funeral outside the central mosque of Didim, Turkey, Saturday, Sept. 14, 2024,(AP Photo/Khalil Hamra)

People attend the funeral prayers for Aysenur Ezgi Eygi, 26 year-old Turkish-American activist killed by the Israeli military, outside the central mosque of City of Didim, Turkey, Saturday, Sept. 14, 2024. (AP Photo/Khalil Hamra)

Turkish military police carry the body of Aysenur Ezgi Eygi, 26 year-old Turkish-American activist killed by the Israeli military, for the funeral prayer outside the central mosque of City of Didim, Turkey, Saturday, Sept. 14, 2024. (AP Photo/Khalil Hamra)

People attend the funeral prayers for Aysenur Ezgi Eygi, 26 year-old Turkish-American activist killed by the Israeli military, outside the central mosque of City of Didim, Turkey, Saturday, Sept. 14, 2024. (AP Photo/Khalil Hamra)

Turkish authorities carry the coffin of Turkish-American activist Aysenur Ezgi Eygi during a ceremony at Istanbul airport, in Istanbul, Turkey, Friday, Sept. 13, 2024. (IHA via AP)

Women attend a funeral prayer in abstentia ceremony in memory of Turkish-American activist Aysenur Ezgi Eygi killed by Israeli gunfire, at Fatih mosque in Istanbul, Turkey, Friday, Sept. 13, 2024. (AP Photo/Francisco Seco)

Men attend a funeral prayer in abstentia ceremony in memory of Turkish-American activist Aysenur Ezgi Eygi killed by Israeli gunfire, at Fatih mosque in Istanbul, Turkey, Friday, Sept. 13, 2024. (AP Photo/Francisco Seco)

An Israeli soldier lights candles at the entrance of a tunnel where the military says six Israeli hostages were recently killed by Hamas militants in the southern Gaza Strip on Friday, Sept. 13, 2024. (AP Photo/Leo Correa)

Israeli soldiers move next to destroyed buildings following Israeli strikes during a ground operation in the Gaza Strip on Friday, Sept. 13, 2024. (AP Photo/Leo Correa)

SANTA CLARA, Calif. (AP) — Quarterback Mac Jones will finally join the San Francisco 49ers four years after the team nearly drafted him third overall.

Jones agreed to a two-year deal worth $7 million with $5 million guaranteed to join the Niners, a person familiar with the deal told The Associated Press on Wednesday night. The person, who spoke on condition of anonymity because the deal hadn’t been announced, said it had a maximum value of $11.5 million.

NFL Network first reported the contract.

Jones and San Francisco were closely linked leading up to the 2021 draft after the Niners traded three first-round picks to get the No. 3 overall selection. Coach Kyle Shanahan was looking to draft a franchise quarterback and was debating between Jones and Trey Lance before San Francisco finally opted for Lance.

The move backfired as Lance struggled to stay healthy and adjust to Shanahan’s system. He made only four starts in two seasons before being traded to Dallas for a fourth-round pick in August 2023, having lost the starting job to 2022 seventh-round pick Brock Purdy.

Purdy has firmly established himself as the full-time starter in San Francisco and now Jones gets the chance to come in as a backup.

Jones had a fast start to his career, helping New England make the playoffs in his rookie season. But Jones regressed the next year after offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels left, and he was replaced as the starter in 2023.

He was traded to Jacksonville last March and started seven games for the Jaguars, throwing eight TD passes and eight interceptions.

Jones has made 49 career starts, posting an 84.9 passer rating with 54 TD passes, 44 interceptions and averaging 6.7 yards per attempt.

The Niners were looking for a backup to Purdy after Joshua Dobbs left in free agency to join New England. Brandon Allen is also a free agent.

AP Pro Football Writer Rob Maaddi contributed to this report

AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/nfl

FILE - Jacksonville Jaguars quarterback Mac Jones (10) looks to throw a pass during the first half of an NFL football game against the Tennessee Titans, Sunday, Dec. 29, 2024, in Jacksonville, Fla. (AP Photo/Phelan M. Ebenhack,File)