IT worker, 22, from Bournemouth 'travels to Syria to join Kurdish forces in fight against Isis'

Jac Holmes, 22, has said he left the UK in January and travelled to the troubled region to train with the Kurdish People's Protection Unit, or YPG

Fighters of the Kurdish People's Protection Units (YPG) walk past an armored vehicle along a street in the town of Tel Tamr February 25, 2015 (Reuters)

An IT worker from Bournemouth with no military experience has travelled to Syria to help Kurdish forces in the fight against Isis, it has been reported.

Jac Holmes, 22, left the UK in January and travelled to the troubled region to train with the Kurdish People's Protection Unit, or YPG, in northern Syria, and has told the BBC he expects he will soon be sent out to fight on the frontline.

Speaking to the BBC World Service's Newshour programme, Mr Holmes said he left the UK in January and travelled to Syria via Iraq.

He said the main reason many foreign fighters travelled to join the Kurdish forces was "primarily to fight against Islamic State" but added "personally I am here to support the Syrian revolution and to support the Kurdish revolution as well".

Mr Holmes said he decided to travel to the country after studying the civil war online.

He said: "I was studying the civil war extensively, every day for maybe about six months, seeing all the brutality that was going on here by various al-Qaeda, Islamic State-linked groups, I decided I wanted to come and do something about it myself, I was sick of just looking at it on the internet."

Mr Holmes said he expected to be sent to the front-line soon, despite not receiving much training from the Kurdish forces.

The Independent has been unable to verify the account given by Mr Holmes.

A Kurdish peshmerga leader confirmed to the BBC that Western volunteers had travelled to join the Kurdish ranks, but insisted they were not allowed to fight "without proper training".

Last week, a British former bouncer Tim Locks told MailOnline about why he had sold his house and joined a Christian militia called the Dwekh Nawsha, currently fighting Islamic forces in Iraq.

A heavily-armed Tim Locks poses for a picture (Facebook)

He said he made the decision after watching news reports on the plight of Yazidis on Mount Sinjar. What has become known as The Sinjar Massacre saw 500 men and women, and 70 fleeing children, killed by advancing Isis forces.

Mr Locks' social media profile however has also revealed his frustrations with Islamic ideology began before the massacre in August.

The Home Office has said people travelling to fight in Syria or Iraq may be committing offences.

A spokesman said: "The UK advises against all travel to Syria and parts of Iraq. Anyone who does travel to these areas, even for humanitarian reasons, is putting themselves in considerable danger.

"The best way for the public to help is to donate to or otherwise support UK-registered charities with ongoing relief operations."

Activists have today said the number of Christians abducted by Isis in north-eastern Syria had risen to 22.

The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights has said militants have picked up dozens more Christian Assyrians from 11 communities near Tal Tamr in the past three days.

Additional reporting by AP