TerrorismISIS says it is holding an Israeli woman pilot hostage

Published 1 December 2014

The Canadian government said yesterday (Sunday) said it was looking into reports that a Canadian-Israeli woman who joined Kurdish militias fighting in northern Syria has been captured by Islamic State (ISIS) fighters. Gill Rosenberg, 31, a former pilot who served in the Israeli Defense Force (IDF), reportedly joined Kurdish troops fighting ISIS earlier this month. Reports said she contacted Kurdish fighters through the Internet, then traveled to the Kurdish areas in Iraq to train at one of their camps on the Syrian border.

Alleged ISIS captive Gill Rosenberg // Source: albawaba.com

The Canadian government said yesterday (Sunday) said it was looking into reports that a Canadian-Israeli woman who joined Kurdish militias fighting in northern Syria has been captured by Islamic State (ISIS) fighters.

A blog linked to ISIS posted a message saying that several female fighters who fought in the ranks of the Kurdish peshmmerga forces have been taken prisoner, including Gill Rosenberg, a Canadian-born Israeli citizen and a resident of Tel Aviv.

Israel Radio quoted Kurdish who denied the claims.

The Guardian reports that a Canadian government spokesman said his country was “pursuing all appropriate channels” as it was seeking more information, and was in touch with local authorities.

The Israeli defense minister, Moshe Ya’alon, in response to a a question from a TV reporter, said: “I cannot confirm that and I hope that it isn’t true.” The Jerusalem Post quoted officials with the Shin Bet, Israel’s general security service, who said that “There are no further details at this stage.”

Rosenberg, 31, a former pilot who served in the Israeli Defense Force (IDF), reportedly joined Kurdish troops fighting ISIS earlier this month. Reports said she contacted Kurdish fighters through the Internet, then traveled to the Kurdish areas in Iraq to train at one of their camps on the Syrian border.

Rosenberg was interviewed last month on Israel Radio, saying she was training with Kurdish guerrillas with the intention of fighting in Syria. “They are our brothers. They are good people. They love life, a lot like us, really,” she said.

On 20 November, an unidentified person posted a message to her Facebook page, saying: “My Facebook account and friend requests are being managed by someone else until I have access again in apx [sic] 2 weeks time on or around week of [8 December]. Please do not message as this is not me. Thank you.”

This weekend saw messages of concern posted to her page by friends.

The Guardian notes that ISIS has killed five Western hostages and is currently believed to be holding thirty-nine Indian construction workers captive.

Last week the group was said to have executed two Iraqi women who were former parliamentary candidates. Unlike previous executions, no videos of these executions were made public.