DTN News: Iraq TODAY August 19, 2010 - Last US Combat Brigade Pulls Out Of Iraq

DTN News: Iraq TODAY August 19, 2010 - Last US Combat Brigade Pulls Out Of Iraq Source: DTN News / AFP

(NSI News Source Info) BAGHDAD, Iraq - August 19, 2010: The last American combat brigade pulled out of Iraq and crossed into Kuwait at dawn on Thursday, almost seven and a half years after the US-led invasion ousted Saddam Hussein, a US military spokesman said.

The 4th Stryker Brigade, 2nd Infantry Division, crossed the border with the neighbouring Gulf emirate at about 6:00 am (0300 GMT), ahead of the planned declaration of an end to combat operations at the end of the month. The pullout came two days after a suicide bomber killed 59 people at a Baghdad army recruitment centre in Iraq's deadliest attack this year, sparking concern the country's forces are incapable of handling security on their own. "Yes, they did," Lieutenant Colonel Eric Bloom told AFP, confirming US media reports that the 4th Stryker Brigade had crossed into Kuwait. "The last one crossed at about 6:00 am this morning." "They have a few more days to clean the equipment, prepare the equipment, get it ready for shipment, and then they'll fly out (back to the United States)." It took three days for the 360 military vehicles and 1,800 soldiers to get down the road from Baghdad, through the Shiite south and into Kuwait, according to The Los Angeles Times. Bloom said about 56,000 US soldiers remained stationed in Iraq, with that figure set to drop to 50,000 by September 1, less than a third of the peak figure during "the surge" of 2007. At that point, the US mission in Iraq will be re-christened "Operation New Dawn", from "Operation Iraqi Freedom" -- the name given to American operations here since the 2003 invasion. "And we'll continue to go through our responsible drawdown to meet that drawdown by 1 September," Major General Stephen Lanza said in an interview with US television channel MSNBC. "It is about a transition to a change of mission, going from combat operations to stability operations." US State Department spokesman Philip Crowley, live on MSNBC as the footage was shown, described the end of combat operations as a "historic moment," but vowed that America's long-term commitment was unwavering. "The last thing that we want to see is an occasion where we have to send troops back into Iraq yet again so we are ending the combat phase of our involvement in Iraq for a second time. "We're not ending our involvement in Iraq. We will have important work to do. This is a transition. This is not the end of something. It's a transition to something different. We have a long-term commitment to Iraq." Crowley said the conflict had come "at high expense" after one trillion dollars was spent in Iraq and 4,400 lives were lost. "We've invested heavily in Iraq and have to do everything we can to preserve that investment to integrate Iraq along with the neighborhood into a much more peaceful situation that serves their interests as well as ours." In a letter dated August 18 and posted on the White House website, President Barack Obama also hailed the end of combat operations but made no mention of the final combat troops leaving. "Shortly after taking office, I put forward a plan to end the war in Iraq responsibly," the letter said. "Today, I'm pleased to report that -- thanks to the extraordinary service of our troops and civilians in Iraq -- our combat mission will end this month, and we will complete a substantial drawdown of our troops." All US troops are supposed to leave the country by the end of next year, according to the terms of a bilateral security pact, and Obama has insisted the ongoing withdrawal is on schedule and will not be altered. The US troop pullouts have come despite warnings from senior Iraqi politicians and officers about the dangers of an early exit given the security situation and political uncertainty. According to Iraqi government figures, July was the deadliest month here since 2008, though the US has disputed that toll. Iraq's top military officer told AFP last week on the sidelines of a defence ministry conference in Baghdad that US forces may be needed in the conflict-wracked nation for a further decade. "At this point, the withdrawal is going well, because they are still here," Lieutenant General Babaker Zerbari said. "But the problem will start after 2011 -- the politicians must find other ways to fill the void after 2011. If I were asked about the withdrawal, I would say to politicians: the US army must stay until the Iraqi army is fully ready in 2020." American military officers, however, say they are confident their Iraqi counterparts are ready to take over. The pullout also coincided with the arrival of James Jeffrey, the new US ambassador to Iraq, who presented his diplomatic credentials Wednesday to the conflict-torn nation's head of state, President Jalal Talabani.

*This article is being posted from Toronto, Canada By DTN News ~ Defense-Technology News, contact: dtnnews@ymail.com

AFP News Headlines

Last US combat brigade pulls out of Iraq

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