Trump hails withdrawal of US troops from Iraq after 12-year ISIS mission
President Donald Trump has announced the completion of the U.S. troop withdrawal from Iraq, marking the end of a 12-year mission against ISIS. The transition shifts security responsibilities to Iraqi forces while maintaining a bilateral training and intelligence partnership.
Why it matters
This withdrawal represents a major shift in U.S. foreign policy in the Middle East and the conclusion of a long-standing military engagement.
US President Donald Trump on Wednesday hailed the withdrawal of American troops from Iraq as an “orderly” end to a 12-year mission against the Islamic State group, as the last US forces left an air base in northern Iraq under a deal between Washington and Baghdad.Trump described the withdrawal, completed by the September 30 deadline, as the end of what he called “a very expensive excursion into Hell”. At a White House event, he said the US involvement in Iraq had resulted from “very bad decision making” and called the conflict a “quagmire” that had lasted for many years.“It's been a long time with very bad decision making that got us involved in this quagmire in the first place. It was a quagmire. For many, many years it lasted.
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