An Islamic State claim of the capture of Gill Rosenberg has been denied by Kurdish forces in Syria (Gill Rosenberg/ Facebook)
KOBANE , Syria, Dec. 1 (UPI) -- There are conflicting reports whether Gill Rosenberg, a Canadian-Israeli woman who claims to have joined the fight against the Islamic State, has been captured.
Rosenberg, 31, told Israeli radio she traveled from Israel to Iraq in November to join a Kurdish militia, the only anti-IS group encouraging women to enter combat. IS-affiliated websites claimed over the weekend she was captured near locations where Kurdish and IS forces were engaged in battle, but Kurdish sources told the Jerusalem Post the reports of her capture were merely IS propaganda.
Two messages have appeared on the Facebook social media website since Sunday night, indicating Rosenberg was not taken prisoner. Facebook user Oliver Bruno wrote "Gill is safe and she is not active on Facebook cause (sic) she has no internet access. ISIS's supporters launched a rumor on social media that she was captured in #Kobani which is not true, simply because Gill is at least 300 km. from Kobani."
The message would imply Rosenberg left Israel to fight but was some 186 miles away from Kobane, a town on the Syria-Turkey border and the scene of two months of fighting.
A later message from Bruno said the head of the YPG Kurdish forces in Kobane "categorically refuted these allegations."
Another message from Facebook user Emanuela Siyar Barzani, citing a "qualified" source, noted "Everything is fine with Gill."
On Saturday, an online form posted a message from a pro-IS contributor, claiming a "female Zionist soldier" was captured in Kobane by IS forces, the SITE Intelligence Group reported. Speculation began that the soldier in question was Rosenberg, but there has been no confirmation.
The Canadian government's Department of Foreign Affairs said it was investigating the reports, but did not confirm Rosenberg, who is from White Rock, B.C., had been captured.
