“We officially announce the end of the combat mission of the coalition forces“Araji wrote on Twitter Thursday after a meeting with coalition commanders and joint operations with Iraqi security forces.
“The relationship with the international coalition will continue in terms of training, counseling and capacity building” of the Iraqi forces, he added.
Although the announcement does not change anything on the ground, it is vital for the Iraqi executive, since it gives him oxygen in the face of the virulent pro-Iranian groups that simply ask for the complete withdrawal of US forces in Iraq.
However, around 2,500 US military personnel, and a thousand soldiers from the international coalition, will continue to play the training and advisory role in Iraq that they had since the summer of 2020.
The change of mission of the international coalition against the Islamic State (IS) by the end of the year was announced in July in Washington by the US president Joe Biden, during a visit by Iraqi Prime Minister Mustafa al Kazimi.
“The coalition will have completed its transition to a non-combat mission before the end of the year,” General Saad Maan, head of communication for the Iraqi Interior Ministry, said at a press conference, citing what he conveyed at the meeting. the coalition commander, General John W. Brennan.
Maan also mentioned the departure from Iraq of coalition troops and military equipment.
The Hashd al Shaabi, a coalition of former Iraqi paramilitaries integrated into the regular forces, is one of the most virulent pro-Iranian groups against the presence of US troops.
On social media, these groups close to Tehran multiplied the threats by reminding the United States of the deadline for the total withdrawal of troops on December 31, a requirement that has never been on the table.
In recent months, rocket fire and drone attacks against US troops and interests have multiplied in Iraq. Although they are not vindicated, the United States imputes them to the pro-Iranian factions.
Source From: Ambito
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