Final Goodbye for American Who Fought ISIS

The family and friends of a young Denver man, killed fighting ISIS, have said their final goodbye.

On Saturday, they gathered at Christ the King Episcopal Church in Arvada, Colorado, to remember 24-year-old Levi Shirley. The Los Angeles Times reports that Shirley's ashes were draped in the yellow flag of the "YPG," the Kurdish militia that he fought with.

The Washington Post reports that Shirley's last battle with YPG was to take back Manbij, a northern Syrian city known as a hub for foreign fighters wanting to join ISIS. It's also a primary focus for the U.S.-led military coalition.

Shirley died July 14 when he entered an apartment building that the rebels had captured. He triggered a booby-trap planted in the wall and was killed instantly, the Times reported.

The YPG released a video of Shirley in which he explains why he traveled to Syria to fight ISIS.

"They're my definition of pure evil," he says in the video. "I don't think good people in a society can stick other people inside of a cage and set them on fire, so--yeah, I came here to stop that."

The Times reports that Shirley's father served three combat tours in Vietnam and that growing up, he wanted to serve as a Marine. However, after high school the Marines rejected him because of poor eyesight, even after his family spent $4,500 for Lasik surgery to improve his chances.

At that point, Shirley decided to join the Kurdish rebels fighting ISIS in northern Syria.

At least three other Americans have died fighting ISIS in Syria. The U.S. government has worked with the Kurdish rebels to bring their bodies home.