US Troops Leave Iraq, Ending Almost 9 Years of War

Dalforce 1941 SG

The last convoy of U.S. soldiers has left Iraq, ending an almost nine-year U.S.-led war that ousted Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein and left a fragile democracy still facing insurgents and sectarian divisions.

The final convoy of 100 U.S. military vehicles carrying about 500 troops crossed into Kuwait Sunday morning , leaving behind several hundred U.S. security personnel at the U.S. embassy in Baghdad. The withdrawal ended a war that cost the lives of almost 4,500 U.S. troops, tens of thousands of Iraqis, and hundreds of billions of dollars of U.S. government funds.

The last U.S. military convoy departed from a base in the southern Iraqi town of Nasiriyah under cover of darkness and secrecy to prevent any final attacks as it drove across a desert highway toward the border. The American soldiers cheered as they entered Kuwait and said they look forward to reuniting with their families.

U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman General Martin Dempsey said Sunday the U.S. military will continue its relationship with Iraq through a security cooperation office that will focus on continuing to develop Iraqi security forces.

Speaking to the Al Hurra television network during a visit to Riyadh , General Dempsey urged Iraqi leaders to beware of what he called Iran's “nefarious” efforts to draw Iraq into its beliefs about world order and security. But, he said the United States also expects Iraq to have an economic relationship with Iran as the two nations are neighbors.

The quiet withdrawal was a sharp contrast to the start of the war in March 2003, when U.S.-led forces launched airstrikes over Baghdad as part of what they called a “shock and awe” campaign against Saddam. U.S. and allied ground forces then stormed from Kuwait into Iraq, toppling the minority Sunni dictator of a Shi'ite majority nation within weeks and capturing him by the end of the year.

Saddam's fall sparked a Sunni insurgency that evolved into a brutal sectarian conflict between Iraq's Shi'ite and Sunni communities, with violence peaking in 2006. The scale of sectarian and insurgent attacks declined significantly after 2007, when the United States sent a surge of troops to Iraq and Sunni tribal militias sided with U.S. forces against Sunni al-Qaida militants.

At the height of the war, more than 170,000 U.S. troops were stationed in Iraq at more than 500 bases. The United States promised to withdraw them by the end of 2011 under a 2008 U.S.-Iraqi agreement signed by the administration of former U.S. President George W. Bush and implemented by current President Barack Obama.

Iraqis have expressed mixed feelings about the U.S. pullout. Many have celebrated the end of what they called an American occupation and a regaining of Iraq's sovereignty, while others have expressed gratitude for U.S. help in ousting Saddam and introducing democracy.

Many Iraqis also complain that their elected government has not done enough to rebuild the country's war-ravaged infrastructure. Another common concern is that the Iraqi government's delicate power-sharing arrangements may unravel in the absence of U.S. troops and re-ignite a sectarian conflict.

In the latest sign of strains within the Shi'ite-led government, Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki sent a letter to parliament Sunday asking lawmakers to fire his Sunni deputy, Saleh al-Mutlaq. The deputy prime minister called Mr. Maliki a “dictator” in a recent interview.

Mutlaq is a member of parliament's Iraqiya bloc, a secular group that has the support of many Sunnis and joined a Maliki-led national unity government after an inconclusive 2010 election. Iraqiya said Saturday it will boycott the assembly in protest at Mr. Maliki's perceived centralization of decision-making.

In a television interview recorded Thursday with U.S. network ABC News, President Obama said the U.S. troop presence in Iraq “succeeded” in giving Iraqis a chance to build a successful future. Mr. Obama opposed the war when he ran for office and vowed to end it. Opinion polls have showed a majority of Americans believe the war went on too long.

http://blogs.voanews.com/breaking-news/2011/12/18/us-troops-leave-iraq-ending-almost-9-years-of-war-2/

Dalforce 1941 SG

ALLUJAH, Iraq — Iraqis burned American flags, brandished banners, and thronged the streets of the western city of Fallujah to celebrate the withdrawal of U.S. troops from the former al-Qaida stronghold and site of some of the Iraq war's fiercest battles.

An estimated 3,000 people flooded the mainly Sunni city carrying Iraqi flags, banners with "Fallujah: The City of Resistance" printed on them, and photos of Fallujah residents killed by U.S forces after the 2003 U.S-led invasion.

Part of the crowd burned several U.S. flags in their celebrations over the American withdrawal.

"Celebrations mark a historical day for the city of Fallujah and we should remember in pride the martyrs who sacrificed their blood for the sake of this city," Dhabi al-Arsan, deputy governor of Anbar province, told the crowd.

Fallujah, a main city in the western desert province of Anbar, served as a base for Iraqi fighters after the invasion, and witnessed two major conflicts in 2004. U.S. troops used overwhelming force, tanks, fighter jets and helicopter gunships to crush insurgents there.

Hundreds of Iraqis were killed in the fighting and thousands were forced to flee their homes.

"I'm glad to see the Americans are leaving Iraq. It's only now we truly feel the taste of freedom and independence," taxi driver Ahmed Jassim, 30, said as he waved the Iraqi flag.

"We will not see American forces anymore. They remind us of strife and destruction."

Nearly nine years after the invasion that toppled Saddam Hussein, Washington plans to end its military presence and pull out the remaining 5,500 U.S. troops before Dec. 31.

Only a small contingent of civilian trainers and fewer than 200 U.S. military personnel will remain in Iraq.

Many Iraqis await the U.S. withdrawal with relief and hopes for a better future, despite fears that sectarian tensions bubbling beneath the surface will return just as Iraq struggles to end years of war and violence.

Overall violence in Iraq has dropped sharply since the dark days of sectarian slaughter in 2006-07, but bombings and killings remain common.

http://www.newsmax.com/Newsfront/Iraq-Fallujah-American-flags/2011/12/14/id/421014

So what happened to Saddam Hussein's weapons of mass destruction?

benqepson SG

will the petrol price go down?

the Bear SG

the weapons of mass destruction was a lie told by Dubbya to invade the place...

as for the US pulling out, the Sunni people there immediately become targets for the Shiite majority as their "backers" have left...

look for moves to consolidate power, and more bloodshed

Mr Milo SG

As ever, leaving behind a mess when they are done with whatever they wanted to do

Dalforce 1941 SG

If U.S hegemony is not destroyed, they will attack more states and kill more people.

U.S hegemony must be completely dismantled. Their weak spot is the economy.

Mr Milo SG

u want hit the US economy hard, kill the US president

Dalforce 1941 SG

u want hit the US economy hard, kill the US president

If U.S economy doesn't pick up and unemployment rate remains high, there will be more protests, unrest and social tensions in the U.S.

U.S will be too busy with internal problems to attack other countries.

single_alone SG

If U.S hegemony is not destroyed, they will attack more states and kill more people.

U.S hegemony must be completely dismantled. Their weak spot is the economy.

US where got hegemony.

The people are sick of wars, cannot find jobs etc.

They are already declining