HASAKAH, Syria — In northern Syria, a group of Western volunteers is trying to bring combat medics into the fight against the Islamic State (IS).
In September, when northern Syria was still hot enough for sand flies to bite, John Harding sat at a makeshift table of plywood and concrete bricks at a former dairy that is now a base for the People’s Protection Units (YPG). He was telling his favorite story from his second tour serving as a volunteer alongside YPG and Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) fighting IS.