By Richard Suchet, Sky News Reporter
"You lost one son but you have earned thousands of other sons."
That is the message from the editor of the UK's only Kurdish newspaper, Aladdin Sinayic, to the family of the first British person to die fighting Islamic State extremists.
Ex-Royal Marine Konstandinos Erik Scurfield, from Barnsley, South Yorkshire, travelled to Syria in December to fight alongside Kurdish forces but was killed on Monday.
It is believed he quit his military career in order to join the fight against IS alongside Kurdish forces.
At the Kurdish Community Centre (KCC) in Haringey, north London, he is considered a hero.
One visitor to the centre told Sky News: "We think that these people must be very, very sensitive about Kurds and very intellectual. They have a big heart for us."
Another said: "When Erik's body is returned to the UK, we would like to do something special for his family - we want to invite them here and have a ceremony for them."
London is home to thousands of Kurds - a community united not by statehood but by language and culture.
Haringey is more than 3,000 miles from the fight against IS but the suffering of their people in the geocultural region of Kurdistan is at the forefront of their minds.
The walls of the KCC are plastered with pictures of Kurdish martyrs, many of whom have family in London.
"As long as we are awake we talk about these issues," says one man.
"It is part of our lives. Our minds have never been free of thinking about what is going on in Kurdistan."
Another added: "We came here two hours ago together, we are having our tea but at the same time we are talking about what is going on in Kurdistan.
"What, for example, is going to happen tomorrow?"
Telegraf editor Mr Sinayic believes the country's Kurdish community would like to see more Westerners travel to the Middle East to take on IS.
"When you see Britons or other nationalities going there and being in the fight, this is something very very important for us," he says.
"They are honourable."
But one British Kurd who has fought IS does not want to see other Brits risking their lives.
Security guard Yasir Abdullah is originally from Iraq but lives in West Yorkshire with his wife and four children.
Twice he has gambled everything by returning to his village to fight alongside other Kurds.
"I see on the TV what they're doing to the Kurdish or Arabs, or executing, everything, the bad things they do and we thought, we have to stand up to fight against this enemy of humanity," he said.
"But we don't want anyone coming over there to help us.
"We thank everybody - if they want to come over we thank them to not come over there.
"If they want to help us, tell the British Government and American Government more weapons. This is what we want."
Authorities go to great lengths to prevent UK nationals travelling to join IS but those wanting to fight against Islamist extremists seem to be free to do so.
But people who succeed in reaching the battlefield are held in high regard by a community that until recently has felt largely abandoned by the West.
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