Early withdrawal of all U.S. forces from two bases in Iraq begins

According to informed political sources, Washington unexpectedly decided to pull all its troops out of the Ain al-Asad and Victoria bases in Iraq.

These sources told Sky News that American forces have begun transferring personnel to Erbil and to a neighboring Arab country. They noted that “the Americans informed their Iraqi counterparts that they would accelerate the withdrawal process and would not adhere to the timeline set in the framework agreement between the two countries.”

Sabah al-Numan, spokesperson for the Commander-in-Chief of the Iraqi Armed Forces, had previously stressed that the withdrawal of coalition forces, known as the anti-ISIS coalition, from Iraq is one of the government’s achievements and reflects Iraq’s ability to confront terrorism.

U.S. forces began their actual withdrawal from Ain al-Asad base in Anbar province, western Iraq, on Thursday evening. Some personnel and equipment were transferred by air. This marked the first step of its kind at the base, as previously only equipment—not personnel—had been moved.