Q & A

The same burning spirit eventually took her far from her comfortable home in Sussex, to the bloodstained battlegrounds of SyriaA Middle Eastern country that was the site of much of the fighting during the Crusades.. Yet it was here that the cause Campbell fought for would claim her life.

From May last year, she volunteered to fight for the YPJThe Women's Protection Unit - an all-female militia linked to the main Kurdish force in Syria, the YPG (People's Protection Units). Both forces are supported by the US., a KurdishThe Kurdish people are an Iranian ethnic group native to Kurdistan in Western Asia. Kurdish people are minorities in all of the countries they live in. militia embroiled in the brutal war against ISISThe name originally belonged to a goddess worshipped in Ancient Egypt, but became tainted by association with Islamic State terrorists..

Recently the fighting intensified, as Turkey - which views Campbell's Kurdish comrades as terroristsThose who use violence or the threat of violence to create fear among a wide group of people. - began a brutal bombardment against them inn northern Syria. True to her spirit, Campbell wanted to go straight to the front line.

Initially her commander refused, saying her blonde hair would make her too conspicuous. So she dyed her hair black and persuaded them to let her go.

But just a few days ago she was killed when a Turkish missile hit her convoy. She is the first British female fighter to die with Kurdish forces in Syria.

Yesterday, in an emotional interview her father paid tribute to his daughter who "would go to any lengths to create the world that she believed in". He also described her as "very idealisticUnrealistically aiming for perfection.".

Such idealism has long been a potent force, and Campbell joins an historic line of British civiliansPeople who are not in the army or the police. who have risked their lives for foreign causes. For example, during the Spanish Civil War, thousands of Britons fought against FrancoFrancisco Franco ruled Spain as a dictator from 1939-1975. Known as the "White Terror", his forces killed up to 400,000 dissenters and political opponents during the Civil War and the first years of his reign. and the rise of fascismA political ideology that rose to power in 20th-Century Europe. It stressed militarism and order over personal freedom, and often divided society according to racial hierarchies. - writer George OrwellReal name Eric Arthur Blair, a world-renowned 20th-century novelist, most famous for his political novels Animal Farm and 1984. famously among the volunteers.

Whilst some call it folly to get involved in foreign battles, columnist Simon Jenkins sees something understandable in the mindset of Campbell and those like her: "the urge to step outside our comfort zone, to find a cause worth fighting for, lies deep in the human soul."

But is Anna Campbell a hero?

Of course, some argue. If we all had the drive and sense of justice that Campbell had, the world would be a much better place. And for those who criticise her idealism, it is only through imagining a better world that positive change can happen. That she fought, and tragically died, to make her vision a reality makes her nothing less than a hero.

We must choose our words carefully, others respond. Whilst her passion, integrity, and personal qualities are to be admired, we must not uncritically laud the decisions she made - decisions which ultimately lead to her death. To do so would be to encourage other idealistic young people down a similarly deadly and regrettable path.

What do we know? Anna Campbell is the eighth British fighter to die in Syria whilst fighting for the Kurds. The force she was fighting for, the YPJYPG, are part of a US backed coalition which was assembled to fight ISIS. However, Turkey view the group as a terrorist organisation due to supposed links with the Kurdish PKK. Whilst NATO and the US also designate the PKK as a terrorist group, their classification excludes the YPJYPG.

What do we not know? UK nationals fighting in Syria face uncertain circumstances when they return to Britain. Police have warned that anyone joining the fight may be charged with terror offences. This happened to Aidan James, 27, who was charged with the preparation of a terrorist act and attending terrorist training after he fought in Syria with Kurdish forces.