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British 'jihadist' killed after car was riddled with bullets by militia groups at Syria checkpoint
- Passport found in a car wreckage belonging to Londoner, Ali Al Manasfi
- Syrian TV reported three Westerners, also including American Nicole Lynn Mansfield, 33, of Flint, Michigan, were killed in Idlib
- The three individuals were allegedly working with an al-Qaeda rebel affiliate
- Died the same day Brit Dr Isa Abdur Rahman was killed in hospital shelling
- Also reported that Moscow is unlikely to deliver controversial S-300 missiles to Syria until Autumn
By David Williams And Chris Greenwood
PUBLISHED:03:33 EST, 31 May 2013| UPDATED:02:46 EST, 1 June 2013
A passport found in the wreckage of the estate car named the dead man as Ali Al Manasfi, 22, from West London
A Briton suspected of fighting with jihadists in Syria was killed yesterday after his car was riddled with bullets by government troops.
A passport found in the wreckage of the estate car named the dead man as Ali Al Manasfi, 22, from West London.
He is said to have been among 200 Britons who went to Syria to fight with rebel forces against President Bashar al-Assad.’
An American woman and another unidentified Western man, thought to be Canadian, also died in the shooting in Idlib province, north-west Syria, a major flashpoint in the two-year civil war.
Rifles, clips of ammunition, grenades and the flag of Al-Nusra – an offshoot of Al Qaeda – were reported to have been found in the vehicle, which was attacked by Assad’s forces.
Rebel commander Mona Mahmood said they died after his soldiers exchanged fire with Shabiha forces, a militia loyal to Assad.
The three, who were said to have been photographing Syrian army positions, were killed trying to return to his forces.
Brit fighting abroad: What appeared to be the passport of Ali Al-Manasfi, 22, from London, was broadcast on Syrian state-run TV
Nicole Lynn Mansfield was shot dead by Syrian government forces along with two other Westerners - reportedly both British - The 33-year-old is from Flint, Michigan and converted to Islam several years ago following marriage to an Arab man
This close up picture shows a British passport (left) and the passport of Nicole Lynn Mansfield (right) - who both died in a gunfight with Syrian government forces
Gunned Down: Syrian state television showed the vehicle the woman was traveling in with a British man that appeared to be riddled with bullets
Beanmaris Tower, Acton, where Ali Al-Manasfi lived before going to Syria
He added: ‘They made a mistake, they wanted to avoid the centre of Idlib and instead took a back route through the suburbs.
‘But they didn’t know there was a Syrian army checkpoint.
‘The army shot up their car and the British guy was killed.’
Syrian TV showed bullet holes covering the windscreen and one of the doors of the black VW Golf.
Images of what appeared to be Manasfi’s body lying beside the car and that of another man with a short beard were also shown. Last night his family said that at first they had not known he was in Syria and had reported his disappearance to police three months ago.
His brother-in-law Kusai Noah said they only discovered where Manasfi was when he called two weeks ago.
Mr Noah added: ‘He had strong feelings about what was happening. He saw it on TV. Everyone has strong feelings, even if they are not Syrian, to see individuals killed every day, children and women, for no reason.’
Mr Noah, who is married to Manasfi’s sister, Bushra, said: ‘When he called his mother he said he wanted to get married and have children there. But we did not believe him.
Harem town, Idlib, Syria - where the shooting is alleged to have taken place
This image from Syrian state television shows the alleged cache of weapons the three Westerner were carrying, their passports and a hand drawn map of a government installation (top right - folded)
Bitter fighting: Dr Rahman began working in conflict-ridden Syria - where a car is seen burning in the wake of shelling by government forces near Damascus this week - almost a year ago
‘It was a very dangerous place to go. His family is from Syria although he was born in England and lived all his life in London.’
The Foreign Office was last night trying to piece together what happened and looking into whether Manasfi was involved with the hardline Al-Nusra Front, blamed for some of the worst atrocities of the war.
Anti-terror officials said the killings highlighted fears that many of the Britons believed to be fighting with terror groups in Syria could return to the UK to continue jihad having had firearms and bomb-making training.
Michigan woman dies in Syria fighting for opposition
Aftermath: Civilians inspect the damage at Arbaeen, near Damascus on Thursday following what activists claimed was shelling by forces loyal to the Assad regime
Arms deal: Russia has refused to scrap plans to provide Syrian President Bashar al-Assad with S-300 anti-aircraft missile systems, pictured, saying they will be a 'useful deterrent' to intervention in the country's conflict
Deadly: File photograph of Russian air-defence S-300 missiles being prepared for launch at a military training ground in Russia
Around 80 Britons have returned to the UK from Syria, with some monitored by MI5 and Scotland Yard.
The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said Manasfi and his two colleagues had been ambushed and it was unclear whether they were fighting with moderates or jihadists.
However, reports in the US named the dead woman as Nicole Mansfield, 33, a mother of one from Flint, Michigan, who had converted to Islam and was said to be part of Al-Nusra.
Her aunt, Monica Mansfield Speelman, said: ‘I didn’t think she was a terrorist, but God only knows.
Aid: A truck carrying supplies sent from Russia to Syrian refugees in Jordan is unloaded today
Civil war: President Bashar al-Assad's government is embroiled in a 26-month-long conflict with a Western-backed insurgency
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