US and allies reduce their military presence in Iraq

(AFP) U.S. and allied forces have begun reducing their presence in Iraq, according to statements from the Pentagon, more than 10 years into a mission aimed at wiping out the jihadist group Islamic State (IS).

After months of talks, Washington and Baghdad agreed last year on a timetable for the progressive withdrawal of international coalition troops from Iraq, created in 2014 to help local forces recapture territories seized by ISIS in this country and neighboring Syria.

Currently, there are "just over 900," up from 2,000 at the start of the year, a Pentagon source told reporters on condition of anonymity.

The coalition was to leave bases in Iraq's federal territory before September 2025 and in autonomous Kurdistan, in the north of the country, by September 2026.

The senior defense official told reporters that the United States was "in the process of making the transition," and that most of the remaining force will remain in Erbil, the capital of Iraqi Kurdistan.

"There is simply no need for U.S. soldiers in federal Iraq to conduct a mission against ISIS. Iraq is perfectly capable of doing that on its own," he explained.

The troops in Erbil will focus "on Syria," he added, and the international coalition will continue for a year its operations there from Iraqi Kurdistan.

"This drawdown reflects our joint success in the fight against ISIS and marks an effort to move toward a sustainable U.S.-Iraqi security partnership," Pentagon spokesman Sean Parnell said in a statement.

"The U.S. government will continue to coordinate closely with the Iraqi government and coalition members to ensure a responsible transition," he added.