French YPG volunteer killed fighting ISIS in Hajin
ERBIL, Kurdistan Region – A French volunteer with Kurdish forces fighting ISIS in northern Syria has been killed.
Farid Medjahed died on October 6 in Deir ez-Zor, the People’s Defense Units (YPG) announced on Wednesday.
He was killed during “intense clashes” with ISIS in villages near Hajin, the YPG stated.
Medjahed, 36, was from Marseilles.
“I have come to Rojava on my own will to support the revolution happening here and protect it,” he said in a video released by the YPG on his death.
“I call on all revolutionaries to come and join us for the revolution.”
Volunteers have come traveled from around the world to join the Kurdish forces in their fight against ISIS and the creation of the self-autonomous region of Rojava, built on the political ideology of PKK founder Abdullah Ocalan.
“The Rojava Revolution is a revolution for everyone, and has become the struggle of many people,” the YPG stated.
Dozens of foreign volunteers have been killed in the conflict.
Many like Medjahed join the YPG without any previous military experience and receive training in Rojava.
The YPG did not disclose when Medjahed joined them, but said that his time in Rojava was “short.”
The battle against ISIS in the Hajin pocket has been ongoing for a month. During operations, the YPG-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) with international coalition support have liberated three villages, rescued two Yezidi women, and killed hundreds of ISIS militants, spokesperson Kino Gabriel stated on Wednesday.
The Hajin area in the Euphrates River valley is the last stronghold of ISIS in Syria and militants are putting up a fierce fight.
ISIS launched “violent and simultaneous counterattacks” on four fronts on Wednesday, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights reported.
The group took advantage of a sandstorm to carry out its attack.
The Observatory recorded the deaths of 10 members of the SDF and said ISIS captured another 35 of the force.
The SDF denied the losses.
“No fighter from the SDF was captured by Daesh [ISIS] on the Deir ez-Zor front. This information is not true,” media representative Mustefa Bali told AFP.
Farid Medjahed died on October 6 in Deir ez-Zor, the People’s Defense Units (YPG) announced on Wednesday.
He was killed during “intense clashes” with ISIS in villages near Hajin, the YPG stated.
Medjahed, 36, was from Marseilles.
“I have come to Rojava on my own will to support the revolution happening here and protect it,” he said in a video released by the YPG on his death.
“I call on all revolutionaries to come and join us for the revolution.”
Volunteers have come traveled from around the world to join the Kurdish forces in their fight against ISIS and the creation of the self-autonomous region of Rojava, built on the political ideology of PKK founder Abdullah Ocalan.
“The Rojava Revolution is a revolution for everyone, and has become the struggle of many people,” the YPG stated.
Dozens of foreign volunteers have been killed in the conflict.
Many like Medjahed join the YPG without any previous military experience and receive training in Rojava.
The YPG did not disclose when Medjahed joined them, but said that his time in Rojava was “short.”
The battle against ISIS in the Hajin pocket has been ongoing for a month. During operations, the YPG-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) with international coalition support have liberated three villages, rescued two Yezidi women, and killed hundreds of ISIS militants, spokesperson Kino Gabriel stated on Wednesday.
The Hajin area in the Euphrates River valley is the last stronghold of ISIS in Syria and militants are putting up a fierce fight.
ISIS launched “violent and simultaneous counterattacks” on four fronts on Wednesday, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights reported.
The group took advantage of a sandstorm to carry out its attack.
The Observatory recorded the deaths of 10 members of the SDF and said ISIS captured another 35 of the force.
The SDF denied the losses.
“No fighter from the SDF was captured by Daesh [ISIS] on the Deir ez-Zor front. This information is not true,” media representative Mustefa Bali told AFP.