US to cut Iraq troop presence below 2,000
Shafaq News – Washington
American troop levels in Iraq will drop to fewer than 2,000 as Washington scales back its military mission and shifts focus to countering ISIS remnants in Syria, a US official told Reuters on Wednesday.
The Pentagon confirmed this week its commitment to reducing operations in Iraq, where Baghdad will take the lead in hunting down the militant group’s scattered cells. Most US personnel will be relocated to the Kurdistan Region, primarily Erbil, the official noted, though the final number and timetable have not been set.
Once the transition is complete, the official said, the American presence will fall below 2,000 troops, down from roughly 2,500 at the start of 2025. A senior military commander added that ISIS “no longer poses a persistent threat to the Iraqi government or to the United States from Iraqi soil,” calling the shift “a major achievement” that enables greater responsibility for Iraq’s security forces.
Read more: EXPLAINER: From the fight against ISIS to US withdrawal talks
The US still has over 900 troops in Syria as part of the Global Coalition formed in 2014 to combat ISIS during its territorial advance. Washington also agreed last year to hand over Ain al-Asad Air Base in al-Anbar province to Iraqi control, a process US officials say is still under way.
