WASHINGTON (Reuters) - An American citizen fighting for Islamic State in Syria surrendered to U.S-backed fighters earlier this week and has been handed over to U.S. forces, the Pentagon said on Thursday. The American surrendered to the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), a U.S.-backed alliance of mostly Arab and Kurdish fighters, on or around Sept. 12.  The US citizen is being legally detained by Department of Defense personnel as a known enemy combatant,  Pentagon spokesman Major Adrian Rankine-Galloway said in a statement. It is not the first time an American citizen fighting for the group has been detained by U.S. allies. In June, a Virginia man who traveled to Syria to become a suicide bomber for Islamic State was convicted of providing material support to the militant group. Mohamad Jamal Khweis, 27, spent about 2-1/2 months in early 2016 traveling with Islamic State fighters in Syria and Iraq and participating in the group s religious training. He was detained by Kurdish peshmerga forces in northern Iraq in March 2016 and turned over to U.S. authorities. 
U.S. citizen fighting for Islamic State surrenders in Syria: Pentagon