Pentagon says US troop withdrawal from Iraq is complete

What the report says

The Pentagon said the last US troops and other coalition personnel tied to the anti-ISIL mission have left Iraq, bringing an end to a lengthy withdrawal process that Baghdad has portrayed as a step toward greater sovereignty. According to Al Jazeera, the final departure took place from Erbil Airbase in Iraq’s semi-autonomous Kurdistan region, where the remaining contingent and equipment were consolidated before leaving.

The exit closes a chapter that began with the 2003 US-led invasion and continued through the fight against ISIL after troops were redeployed in 2015. The article says the broader coalition presence had been reduced over time as ISIL lost its territorial hold in Iraq in 2017, with the mission shifting to an advisory role. CENTCOM said the anti-ISIL task force has now moved to Jordan, while some US troops remain in Syria.

US officials framed the move as a transition from a wartime coalition to a more ordinary security relationship with Iraq. The Iraqi government has welcomed the withdrawal, saying it opens space for a stronger national security role and broader economic ties. At the same time, the report notes concerns from Kurdish officials and others that Iraq could face new pressures from ISIL remnants, Iran-aligned militias, and wider regional instability.

The development matters because it alters the US military footprint in Iraq after more than two decades of intervention, while leaving Baghdad with the task of managing remaining security threats on its own.