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Report: American ISIS Fighter Captured in Iraq

State Department, military investigating reports

Islamic State group's flag
Islamic State group's flag is seen in an area after Kurdish troops known as peshmerga regained control of some villages west of the oil-rich city of Kirkuk, 180 miles north of Baghdad, Iraq / AP
March 14, 2016

An American ISIS fighter has reportedly been captured by Kurdish forces in Iraq and is being held in their custody, according to regional reports and U.S. officials who say they are aware of the situation and are further investigating the details.

Kurdish officials disclosed early Monday that a 27-year-old Virginia resident had been caught sneaking into Iraq, mistaking it for the Turkish border.

Local Kurdish officials told regional news outlets that the man is a U.S. citizen.

"A local commander told Kurdish news outlet Rudaw that the arrested man was 27-year-old Muhammad Jamal Amin," Russia's state-controlled RT news outlet reported, citing unnamed Kurdish officials.

Cell phones, money, and ID badges were reportedly seized from the individual, "a Virginia-born US citizen of a Palestinian father and an Iraqi mother," according to the report.

A senior U.S. military official in the region confirmed to the Washington Free Beacon Monday morning that the reports appear to be accurate and that the individual is in Kurdish custody. The Kurds are handling the situation without U.S. assistance, the source said.

The United States will not yet confirm the individual is a U.S. citizen, but are currently investigating the reports.

A State Department official familiar with the situation additionally told the Free Beacon that they are "aware of reports that a U.S. citizen that was allegedly fighting for Da’esh [ISIS] has been captured by Peshmerga forces in northern Iraq."

U.S. officials remain "in touch with Iraqi and Kurdish authorities to determine the veracity of these reports," the official said, adding that the State Department has "no further information to share at this time."

The Free Beacon will update this report as more information becomes available.

Published under: ISIS