Tragedy ... Roger Abbas died while working at a refugee camp in Syria.

Tragedy ... Roger Abbas died while helping rebels in their fight against the Syrian regime.

AN AUSTRALIAN man has died in crossfire while working at a refugee camp in Syria, the Islamic Society of Victoria say.

The family of Roger Abbas, 23, was told of the death on Monday, but it is unclear when he died.

Islamic Society of Victoria vice president Baha Yehia said the man from the north Melbourne suburb of Meadow Heights had been providing aid for about a month at a camp on the border with Turkey.

Despite the civil war being most violent near the capital Damascus, there have been several exchanges on the Syrian border, some involving Turkish forces.

Mr Yehia said Mr Abbas, a kick-boxer, had not travelled to Syria to join rebels in fighting the regime.

Several online tributes posted for Mr Abbas yesterday, including one by a man saying he was his brother and another by a female cousin, referred to him as a soldier or a fighter, but Mr Yehia said he had had no military training and had not been in Syria long enough to receive any.

''Even though he was a kick-boxer, he was not an angry or fierce person,'' Mr Yehia said.

''He was gentle, and if you speak to anyone who fought him they would have seen that soft spot.

''A lot of people will miss him and think it's a tragedy, but a lot of people also think he died an honourable death while helping people out.''

He said Mr Abbas had prayed at the Preston mosque and was the youngest sibling in a large family.

Mr Yehia said the family may still be in shock about the death.

''They seem to be coping with it, it would have obviously been different if it had happened here,'' he said.

''But it's hard to say what they're like when they leave the mosque.''

He said there had been several people travel to Syria from Melbourne to provide aid.

''It's very easy to get through the border to the refugee camps from the Turkish side, so there have been a few people who have taken a week or two off to help out,'' Mr Yehia said.

''The [Abbas] family were well known in the community for helping out charities and doing what they could so I guess that's why he decided to go. That's just who they are.

''But even if you're in the camps, it's still very hostile over there.''

A Facebook post from a man who said Mr Abbas was his "brother and best friend" appeared to suggest he had another brother ''fighting in Syria''. He wrote that the pair had been ''helping the Syrians fight instead of sitting and watching our brothers and sisters getting killed and eating popcorn''.

The tweet from a woman claiming to be Mr Abbas' cousin said he had been fighting against the regime and was ''a hero''.

A friend wrote: "Brother Roger Abbas from Melbourne was martyred in Syria. May Allah accept him as a shaheed and enter him the hightest of paradise."

Promoter John Scida had booked Abbas as one of four drawcard fighters in an event in Melbourne's western suburbs almost a fortnight ago.

He said a week before the October 19 bout, he received a phone call saying that Abbas was "overseas and would not be coming back".

"I was told he was over in Syria helping with aid but I don't really know," Mr Scida said.

It is believed that Abbas had taken part in about eight fights in and around Melbourne.

"From what I saw he was quite a good fighter," Mr Scida said.

In August, popular Sydney sheikh and teacher Sheikh Mustapha Al Majzoub was killed in a rocket attack while carrying out humanitarian and charity work in conflict-torn country.

The former teacher at the Unity Grammar School in western Sydney travelled to the country on humanitarian grounds in June.

A Department of Foreign Affairs spokesman said there had been no contact between them and the man's family.

''We are aware of media reports that an Australian man may have been killed in Syria. The Department has no information to confirm these reports, but is seeking to investigate their veracity.

''We do not have a diplomatic mission, or permanent diplomatic presence, in Syria. The Department's Travel Advice for Syria has recommended since April 2011 that Australians do not travel to Syria due to the dangerous security situation.''

with Adrian Lowe