By Ben Farmer, Defence Correspondent

A serving British soldier has travelled to the Middle East to join Kurdish fighters battling against Islamic State.

The unnamed man, understood to be a 19-year-old serving with the 2nd Battalion of The Princess of Wales's Royal Regiment, left his base in Cyprus after telling his family he was joining the Kurdish peshmerga in their battle against the extremist group because "these guys need our help".

He told relatives that he was leaving two days ago and that he is intending to spend a year in the region, according to Sky News.

He is currently on annual leave. If he does not return when his leave ends, he will be considered Awol sources said, but the priority is to ensure he is safe rather than punish him.

The soldier is understood to be the first serving member of the Armed Forces to join the peshmerga, though several former soldiers are believed to have gone to fight.

The soldier, who joined up at the age of 16 after leaving school, had reportedly been learning Arabic.

"I've gone to join the Kurds in Syria and Iraq," he wrote to his family, according to Sky News. "I'm with other British people and a Canadian at the moment.

"I don't know how to explain it to you but I really want and need to do this and I will be safe."

Soldiers from the same battalion have been training Kurdish forces in Iraq in infantry tactics as part of Britain's effort against Isil, but it is unclear if the soldier had been among the trainers.

A Ministry of Defence spokesman said: "We are aware of these reports and are looking into them."

In December it emerged that two former British soldiers had travelled to Syria to fight against IS after feeling "compelled" to take up arms following the murder of aid volunteer Alan Henning.

The Telegraph