Washington, October 1: US President Donald Trump has announced the departure of the last American forces from Iraq, bringing the US-led military mission against ISIS in the country to an end after 12 years.
Trump described the withdrawal as a “decisive victory” over ISIS, saying the group had been defeated as an organised military force in Iraq. The US military confirmed that American forces and equipment had completed their departure from Erbil Air Base in northern Iraq on September 30.
The withdrawal marks the formal end of Operation Inherent Resolve in Iraq, the US-led campaign launched in 2014 after ISIS seized large parts of Iraq and Syria. The group lost its territorial stronghold in Iraq in 2017 and its last major territorial holdings in Syria in 2019.
Trump said the United States had achieved the objective for which its forces returned to Iraq and that it was now time for American troops to leave. He described the departure as a victory for both the United States and Iraq.
The withdrawal follows an agreement reached between Washington and Baghdad in 2024. Under the arrangement, coalition forces began gradually ending their military mission in Iraq, with the final phase completed this week.
US officials said the departure marks a shift from a wartime coalition operation to a bilateral defence relationship between Washington and Baghdad. The United States is expected to continue providing selected training and intelligence support to Iraqi security forces.
The end of the Iraq mission does not mean the US-led fight against ISIS has ended across the region. The Combined Joint Task Force remains headquartered in Jordan, while American forces continue counter-ISIS operations in Syria alongside regional and coalition partners.
American troops first withdrew from Iraq in 2011, following the 2003 US-led invasion. They returned in 2014 after ISIS captured large areas of the country and threatened Baghdad.
The final withdrawal has been welcomed by Iraqi groups that have long opposed the US military presence, while some Iraqi and Kurdish officials have expressed concerns about the possibility of ISIS sleeper cells exploiting any security gaps.
With the last American troops now out of Iraq, security responsibility has formally shifted to Iraqi forces, marking a new phase in the relationship between Washington and Baghdad after more than two decades of US military involvement
