The United States announced on Wednesday that it had “officially concluded” the mission of the international coalition it was leading to fight ISIS in Iraq, after the withdrawal of its forces from an air base in Erbil in the Kurdistan region.
A statement issued by the Pentagon said: “Today, the United States and its coalition partners officially concluded Operation Inherent Resolve in Iraq, in line with the US-Iraqi Joint Statement issued in September 2024 and US national interests.”
For his part, Iraqi Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi announced on Wednesday the start of “a new phase entitled Iraqi sovereignty” after the withdrawal of coalition forces, stressing that the end of the coalition’s mission does not mean the end of the battle with terrorism.
Al-Zaidi continued that security cooperation with the international coalition will be more effective, and will include digital technology to support security, announcing the transfer of joint operations tasks to the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces.
The Iraqi Prime Minister stressed that “there are no weapons outside the umbrella of the law and state institutions.”
In addition, the spokesman for the Iraqi Ministry of Defense, Major General Yahya Rasoul, confirmed on Tuesday evening that Iraq will not witness the presence of any element from the international coalition after September 30, coinciding with the departure of American forces today (Wednesday) from their remaining bases in Iraq.
Rasoul said, according to the Iraqi News Agency (INA): “There will not be any element from the international coalition after September 30, and there is no soldier from the international coalition inside Iraq,” indicating that “the withdrawal of the international coalition is the result of a great effort made by Iraq.”
He added, "The Iraqis were the ones who liberated the land with the support of the international coalition, and bilateral relations with the international coalition countries are advanced," stressing that "there is no one above the rule of law." He pointed out that the Iraqi security and intelligence services have achieved great progress in confronting terrorism and corruption.
Regarding the Victoria Base, the spokesman for the Iraqi Ministry of Defense confirmed that “the Iraqi army will use the Victoria Base to secure the country’s skies and land,” explaining that “there are no international coalition aircraft at the Victoria Base.”
In a related context, the security advisor to the Iraqi Prime Minister, Qasim Al-Araji, confirmed today (Wednesday) that Iraq has reached an important milestone by ending the mission of the international coalition and the presence of its forces, in a way that consolidates sovereignty and serves the national interests and aspirations of the Iraqi people.
Al-Araji said, in a statement carried by the Iraqi News Agency (INA): “In continuation of the path of negotiations and understandings that began on July 22, 2021, today we reach an important milestone by ending the mission of the international coalition and the presence of its forces.” He added: “Victory over ISIS terrorist gangs was achieved through the sacrifices of Iraqis and the valor of our armed forces of all types and formations, with the support of the international coalition and brotherly and friendly countries, and it is a role that we appreciate and value.”
He continued: “The end of the coalition mission does not mean the end of the partnership, but rather a transition to more established bilateral relations, with continued security and intelligence cooperation, exchange of information and expertise, and capacity building, based on mutual respect and common interests, in a way that enhances security and stability and supports the aspirations of our people towards sustainable peace, development and prosperity.”
The withdrawal was approved during 2024 during the era of former US President Joe Biden, and is being implemented by the Donald Trump administration even as it wages war on Iran. The withdrawal comes 23 years after the US-led forces overthrew Saddam Hussein, which at that time sparked unrest and chaos that culminated in the emergence of ISIS. The Iranian Revolutionary Guard urged Americans to vote to expel Trump's allies from Congress, coinciding with the withdrawal of American forces from Iraq, the country in which Tehran has gradually consolidated its influence through its proxies since the fall of Saddam Hussein.
Although the withdrawal enjoys broad support among Iraqis, some are concerned that the security forces trained and funded by the United States are still unable to protect the country in which 4,500 American forces were killed during a war that lasted more than 20 years, according to what Agence France-Presse reported.
American forces invaded Iraq in 2003, then took steps to occupy the country, installing a government led by Shiite forces, and waging a war against those opposed to it that lasted for years - first against those loyal to Saddam Hussein and then against Al-Qaeda - before withdrawing at the end of 2011.
Then, less than three years later, American forces returned to help Iraqi forces defeat ISIS in a major war that extended from 2014 to 2017.
“Operation Iraqi Freedom” claimed the lives of nearly twice the number of Americans who were killed in a simultaneous war in Afghanistan, which ended with a sudden American withdrawal in 2021. In this year’s war on Iran, seven out of 18 American soldiers declared killed during the conflict fell in Iraq, the last of whom was a soldier with the rank of “sergeant” who was killed during a controlled drone explosion at a base near Erbil in July.
Some Iraqi security officials, in the federal government and in the semi-autonomous Kurdistan region in the north of the country, say that the American withdrawal also entails the risk of giving ISIS fighters a new opportunity for activity, as they still maintain a network of sleeper cells. American forces were providing Iraqi security forces with crucial intelligence information about ISIS movements, in addition to aerial surveillance and reconnaissance operations.
