Israeli forces kill US citizen in West Bank Bank with 'gunshot to head'

A Palestinian hospital official said on Friday that a US citizen died from a "gunshot in the head" in the occupied West Bank, and Israel's military said it was investigating the incident.

The activist was identified as Aysenur Ezgi Eygi, a 27-year-old US national of Turkish origin, Nablus Governor Ghassan Daghlas told The New Arab's Arabic language site Al-Araby Al-Jadeed.

She was described as an "American activist” by the director of the Rafidia Hospital, Fouad Nafaa, who also confirmed that she had arrived at the hospital with a gunshot in the head, and was pronounced dead at around 14:30.

Governor Daghlas said there were "clear orders to shoot to kill" given to the Israeli forces, which led to the foreign activist's killing while she was taking part in a peaceful demonstration.

The official Palestinian news agency Wafa reported that the slain activist had been involved in a campaign known as "Fazaa" to protect farmers from Israeli settler violence, which has surged in the West Bank alongside the ongoing war in the Gaza Strip.

Israeli troops or settlers have killed at least 661 Palestinians in the West Bank, according to the Palestinian health ministry.

At least 23 Israelis, including security forces, have been killed in Palestinian attacks in the territory during the same period, according to Israeli officials.

Last month a US citizen told AFP he was shot by Israeli forces and wounded in the leg during a protest against settlement expansion in the occupied West Bank, as the Israeli military confirmed it fired live rounds to disperse the gathering.

Palestinian medics reported that a foreign activist was shot during the demonstration in the town of Beita, while the Israeli military said he was "accidentally injured".