[An Nahar] The family of a U.S. woman believed to have been killed in Syria was anxiously awaiting news of her fate Friday, after reports that she was rubbed out by regime forces near the border with Turkey."Keep us in your prayers," Carole Mansfield told Agence La Belle France Presse as she awaited confirmation from U.S. officials that her granddaughter, Nicole Lynn Mansfield, was among three Westerners reportedly killed on Wednesday.
Mansfield, 33, grew up in Flint, Michigan and was raised a Baptist. She converted to Islam about five or six years ago and briefly married an Arab immigrant, her grandmother said.
"She was a caring person. A firm believer in what she believed in. And a giving person," Carole Mansfield said.
"If you were down and out she would have been the first to come to your rescue."
FBI agents came to Mansfield's home Thursday trying to piece together how -- or if -- her granddaughter ended up in Syria. They warned the family that the reported death was not yet confirmed, Mansfield said.
U.S. Secretary of State John F.
I was in Vietnam, you knowKerry
Former Senator-for-Life from Massachussetts, self-defined war hero, speaker of French, owner of a
lucky hat,conqueror of Cambodia, and current Secretary of State...
said Friday he could not confirm the woman's death.
"I know there were reports today of this American woman who allegedly was killed fighting for the opposition... I don't have the details as I stand here now," he told news hounds.
An FBI front man contacted by AFP on Friday declined to comment on the report.
Mansfield said she hadn't seen her granddaughter in months and had no idea that she was in Syria -- or why she would be there.
Nicole Mansfield apparently called her aunt in Cincinnati about a month ago and told her that she was out of the country but would be home "soon" and would stop by to see her when she got back.
Her 18-year-old daughter is taking the reports of her death particularly hard, while her father remains in denial, Carole Mansfield said.