Last US troops expected to leave Iraq on Wednesday after ISIS fight, Pentagon says
For years there had been about 2,500 U.S. troops in Iraq.
The U.S. military is expected to complete the total withdrawal of U.S. troops from Iraq on Wednesday, after a 12-year presence prompted by the war against ISIS, the militant Islamic State group, the Pentagon said on Wednesday, describing the withdrawal as an "orderly departure."
"This milestone reflects the success of a 12-year campaign that defeated ISIS as an organized military threat in Iraq and across the region," Chief Pentagon Spokesman Sean Parnell said in a statement. "It also marks a transition from a wartime coalition mission to an Iraqi-led security effort supported by a more normal bilateral security relationship."
Wednesday's completion will mark the second time that the U.S. has withdrawn all of its military forces from Iraq. In 2011 the U.S. pulled out after an 8-year presence that began with the U.S. invasion of Iraq in 2003.
The U.S. returned in 2014 as ISIS conquered wide swaths of Syria and northern Iraq and threatened the approaches to Baghdad. The U.S. defeated ISIS militarily in 2019, but the U.S. continued U.S. presence was seen as a necessary one to prevent a resurgence of ISIS.
For years there had been about 2,500 U.S. troops in Iraq.
The withdrawal was negotiated with Iraq by the Biden administration in 2024 and the Trump administration has continued with the withdrawal plan that set Sept. 30 as the final pullout date, the Pentagon said. The U.S. war with Iran has created a different regional situation for Iraq and the United States than when the deal was agreed upon.
Iraqi Prime Minister Ali Al-Zaidi attended a ceremony that his office said was to mark the end of the international mission to combat ISIS in Iraq.
In a speech during the ceremony, "He emphasized that Iraq is today reaping the rewards of immense sacrifices and years of heroic effort, culminating in our security agencies -- across all branches -- establishing full control over the security and operational landscape throughout the country," according to his office.
Iraq and Iran have a shared Shiite cultural heritage and Iran has militarily assisted Shiite-militias inside Iraq. Questions remain about how far Iran will be able to increase its presence and influence in Iraq and whether ISIS could become resurgent.
Throughout this year, the U.S. has been consolidating its positions throughout the country into northern Iraq, but has quietly been moving out forces from Erbil since the start of the war with Iran. In recent months the reduction of forces proceeded along and there has been a very small U.S. presence in northern Iraq for quite some time.
Earlier this year the U.S. withdrew its forces from eastern Syria. That was an unplanned withdrawal spurred by the new Syrian government’s push against the United States' Syrian Kurdish partners.
With Wednesday's expected withdrawal, the U.S. will once again end a military presence inside of Iraq that has stretched for more than two decades and was the scene of approximately 4,500 U.S. military deaths, the vast majority occurring between 2003-2011.
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