U.S. military on track to withdraw all forces from Iraq by Sept. 30

WASHINGTON (TNND) — U.S. officials announced on Wednesday that the military is on track to pull all of its forces out of Iraq by the end of September. The pullout marks the end of the U.S. military presence in the area that started with the 2003 invasion against Saddam Hussein.

In 2024, Washington and Baghdad agreed to wind down U.S.-led operations against the Islamic State group.

Most U.S. troops were pulled out of Iraq last yearm but kept a continuous presence in the semi-autonomous Northern Kurdish region. The bases in the area have regularly been under attack since the U.S. and Israel launcched the war against Iran on Feb. 28.

Iraqi Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi met with Adm. Brad Cooper, leader of the U.S. Central Command, on Wednesday. Al-Zaidi said in a statement afterward that he had affirmed Sept. 30 as the “fixed and final date for ending the military mission of the Global Coalition to Defeat ISIS in Iraq and completing the departure of its forces.”

A U.S. official confirmed that the U.S. expects to complete its pullout by Sept. 30, but did not say how many troops remain in Iraq or where they would be redeployed.

“The United States, Iraq and coalition partners have achieved tremendous success in defeating ISIS and now the Iraqi security forces, including the Peshmerga and other Iraqi Kurdistan Region security forces, will lead the fight against terrorists in Iraq,” the official said.