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A Canadian army veteran who fought with Kurdish forces in northern Syria is being detained in Iraq, according to two acquaintances who said the former Vancouver resident was arrested along with five other Westerners.

“We are aware of the arrest of a Canadian citizen in Iraq,” said Rachna Mishra, a Foreign Affairs spokeswoman. “Canadian consular officials at the embassy of Canada in Amman, Jordan, are providing consular assistance as required.”

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The embassy in Amman provides consular services to Canadians in Iraq.

He remained in custody as of Monday. Mishra said the department could not release further information, including exactly how the embassy was responding, for privacy reasons.

But Hanna Bohman, a Vancouver woman currently with the Kurdish forces, said the Canadian was a volunteer with the People’s Protection Units, or YPG, the Syrian Kurdish militia battling the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant.