Jerusalem, Israel - The family of a Turkish-American woman shot dead while demonstrating against Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank demanded an independent investigation into her death on Saturday, accusing the Israeli military of killing her "violently."

Aysenur Ezgi Eygi (26) was "shot in the head" while participating in a demonstration in Beita in the West Bank on Friday, the United Nations rights office said.

"Her presence in our lives was taken needlessly, unlawfully, and violently by the Israeli military," Eygi's family said in a statement.

"A US citizen, Aysenur was peacefully standing for justice when she was killed by a bullet that video shows came from an Israeli military shooter," they continued.

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"We call on President [Joe] Biden, Vice President [Kamala] Harris, and Secretary of State [Antony] Blinken to order an independent investigation into the unlawful killing of a US citizen and to ensure full accountability for the guilty parties."

The Israeli military said its forces "responded with fire toward a main instigator of violent activity who hurled rocks at the forces and posed a threat to them" during the protest.

Eygi was a member of the International Solidarity Movement (ISM), a pro-Palestinian organization, and was in Beita on Friday for a weekly demonstration against Israeli settlements, according to ISM.

The group on Saturday dismissed claims that ISM activists threw rocks at Israeli forces as "false" and said the demonstration was peaceful.

"Aysenur was more than 200 meters away from where the Israeli soldiers were, and there were no confrontations there at all in the minutes before she was shot," ISM said in a statement.