From U.S. Jail to Kurdish Frontlines: Who's the Israeli-Canadian Fighting ISIS?
Gill Rosenberg, 31, has reportedly been convicted of fraud and served time in an American prison.
The Canadian-born woman who has joined Kurdish militants fighting Islamic State was identified on Tuesday as 31-year-old Gill Rosenberg, Israel Radio reported.
- Canadian-born Israeli Fights With Syrian Kurds
- Iraqi Forces Advance in Bid for Refinery
- AT&T and the ISIS Connection
- ISIS Reps Reportedly Visit Pakistan
- Obama Orders Review of Syria Policy
- U.S. Sailors Attacked in Istanbul
- Israel: Checking Reports ISIS Captured Israeli
- U.S. Isn’t Panicking Over Iran in Iraq
- American Surfer Joins Fight Against ISIS
- Syria Political Opposition Taps New Leader
- Fight Against ISIS Draws Former U.S. Soldiers
Rosenberg, a resident of Tel Aviv, said she had contacted Kurdish fighters over the Internet before traveling through Iraq to train at one of their camps on the Syrian border.
New details that emerged Tuesday indicate Rosenberg's life was tumultuous even before she hunkered down in the trenches of northern Syria. She was arrested in 2009 in a joint FBI-Israel Police operation on suspicion of being part of a fraud ring that stole money from elderly American citizens by pretending to be lottery representatives, Walla News reported, for which she served time in a U.S. jail.
According to Walla, Rosenberg made aliyah in 2006, leaving behind a career as a civilian pilot, and served for two years in the Israel Defense Forces.
"They are our brothers. They are good people. They love life, a lot like us, really," she told Israel Radio on Monday, explaining her decision to enter the combat zone in northern Syria.
Israel has maintained discreet military, intelligence and business ties with the Kurds since the 1960s, seeing in the minority ethnic group a buffer against shared Arab adversaries. The Kurds are spread through Syria, Iraq, Turkey and Iran. Worried about spillover from the Syrian war, Israel has been cracking down on members of its 20-percent Arab minority who return after volunteering to fight with Islamic State or other rebels opposed to Syrian President Bashar Assad's rule.
An image of Gill Rosenberg, taken from her Facebook page
Gill Rosenberg baking bread with Kurds. Taken from her Facebook page
Gill Rosenberg at the Kotel. Taken from her Facebook page
Click the alert icon to follow topics:
Comments
SUBSCRIBERS JOIN THE CONVERSATION FASTER
Automatic approval of subscriber comments.
In the News
ICYMI
Jewish Law Above All: Recordings Reveal Far-right MK's Plan to Turn Israel Into Theocracy
Why I’m Turning My Back on My Jewish Identity
Down and Out: Why These New Immigrants Ended Up Leaving Israel
The Reality Behind ‘The White Lotus’ Sex Work Fantasy
This ‘Dystopian’ Cyber Firm Could Have Saved Mossad Assassins From Exposure
