American Parker joins YPG to fight Daesh
NEWS DESK (DİHA) - An American grandfather has joined the Kurds in the fight against ISIS in Syria after abandoning his idyllic life as a surf instructor in Costa Rica, to wield an AK-47 against the jihadists. In an interview with MailOnline, Dean Parker, who has no previous military experience, said he ‘heard God’s call’ to take up arms after watching a heartbreaking TV report about the plight of the Êzidi people trapped on Mount Sinjar (Shengal) by Islamic State gang fighters.
After flying out to Syria, the West Palm Beach, Florida, native has joined the "Lions of Rojava" – a famous squad of foreign fighters which is part of the People’s Protection Unit, known as the YPG. The 49-year-old has swapped his job as a surf instructor in stunning Zancudo, Costa Rica, for frontline training in the war against terror group ISIS. The US volunteer told MailOnline: ‘When ISIS was attacking the Yazidis and they had fled to the mountain, an Iraqi helicopter with a western journalist went to drop water.
"Women and children rushed in and started piling into the chopper. The cameraman filmed this one mother holding her 10 or 11-year-old son. He was dressed for school it seemed. She was crying, holding him. He was looking at the camera and that look of sheer terror in his eyes overwhelmed me with emotions I have never felt before. I actually became physically ill and was crying uncontrollably. This has never happened to me before, and that was it. I knew I had to come, and never in the month before coming here did I have any doubt. For Parker it was a life-changing moment and in an instant he made the decision to leave behind his family, friends and even his beloved German shepherd dog, Gretchen, to go and fight. After travelling via Istanbul he arrived in the Kurdistan region of Iraq on October 28, but he did not inform those close to him until five days later, when he posted a statement on his Facebook page on November 2.
Parker told MailOnline he waited before telling his family because he wanted to make sure he had made the right decision to join the battle. Despite having no military experience, Dean Parker has taken up arms to fight with Kurds against Islamic State in Syrian Kurdistan. In the post he revealed he had moved to Rojava, a small Syrian town near the Turkish border, and had started training with Kurdish fighters. Parker wrote: ‘The YPG is training me, until I am ready, then join the fight against Daesh (ISIS). ‘The only way to try to explain this, is that I heard God’s call. ‘The Kurds are the most amazing people, I’m so very blessed. ‘I’m not much for words except I love you all my friends, I’m in very good hands.’ Since then, Parker has been completing his military training and doing his best to learn the Kurdish language.
He told MailOnline: ‘I have been embedded with other foreigners and many Kurds speak some English. ‘Most speak at least two languages, some know more.’ Many years travelling the world and learning martial arts had given him a ‘mental toughness,’ he added. He also insisted the YPG had been careful not to throw him straight into the fiercest fighting, but had been training him on the quiet parts of the frontline. He said: ‘I am in good hands here. The experienced military guys go to where the real fighting is. ‘Maybe I’ll stay and live here afterwards. The Kurds are the most gracious, respectful people I have ever met. ‘We are family now. I am so honoured to be here.’ But for all the excitement of his new life as a warrior, Parker did admit to missing his favourite pastime, surfing. He said: ‘I will always surf’, adding he has sworn to take to the waves in the Black Sea when ISIS is defeated. Despite his apparently baffling decision, many friends and family members have expressed support for Parker’s choice on social media.
‘I can’t tell you how good it is to see you looking so strong and healthy,’ one wrote. ‘Your determination to make a difference just shows your heart and qualities. Your family and friends are so very proud of you.’ ‘You are our HERO,’ wrote another. ‘Stay Strong. Stay Healthy. Stay Humble. Duck when necessary.’ ISIS has developed a fearsome reputation both on and off the battlefield, particularly when dealing with foreigners. They have posted a series of videos showing the murders of US journalists James Foley and Steven Sotloff, US aid worker Peter Kassig and British aid workers David Haines and Alan Henning. But Parker says he will stay and fight until the group is pushed out of Kurdish land, something he estimated would take up to two years. Despite his apparently baffling decision, many friends and family members have expressed support for his choice on social media, where he has posted a number of photos of himself shooting a rifle, along with others of him relaxing at the Citadel in the Kurdish capital, Erbil.
‘I can’t tell you how good it is to see you looking so strong and healthy,’ one wrote. ‘Your determination to make a difference just shows your heart and qualities. Your family and friends are so very proud of you.’ ‘You are our HERO,’ wrote another. ‘Stay Strong. Stay Healthy. Stay Humble. Duck when necessary.’ ISIS has developed a fearsome reputation both on and off the battlefield, particularly when dealing with foreigners. They have posted a series of videos showing the separate murders of US journalists James Foley and Steven Sotloff, US aid worker Peter Kassig and British aid workers David Haines and Alan Henning. Nonetheless Parker was relaxed about his future, claiming he would stay until ISIS were pushed out of Kurdish land, something he estimated would take around one or two years. ‘Maybe I’ll stay and live here afterwards,’ he said. ‘The Kurds are the most gracious, respectful people I have ever met. We are family now. I am so honoured to be here.’ By Tom Wyke And Tim Macfarlan For Mailonline – The Daily Mail UK.
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