British and American military personnel have completed their withdrawal from Iraq, marking the end of Operation Inherent Resolve, the international coalition mission established to counter the Islamic State group. Approximately 100 UK troops departed from Irbil in northern Kurdistan, coordinated with US forces who also left on Wednesday. The withdrawal follows a bilateral agreement signed between the United States and Iraqi government two years ago establishing a deadline of the end of this month for foreign troop departures.
The military presence of both nations in Iraq began in 2014 as part of the counter-extremism coalition. Iraqi Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi characterized the withdrawal as marking Iraq’s transition to assuming full responsibility for its own security and stability. The UK Ministry of Defence stated that Iraqi Security Forces and Kurdish Peshmerga forces have achieved the enduring territorial defeat of the Islamic State and are prepared to take primary responsibility for national security. Pentagon spokesman Sean Parnell described the departure as the successful conclusion of the military mission that defeated the extremist group in Iraq.
Although Iraq’s government declared the military defeat of Islamic State in 2017, coalition forces remained to prevent the group’s resurgence. A recent UN report assessed that sustained counter-terrorism efforts have reduced the organization to several hundred fighters capable only of unsophisticated operations. During their tenure, UK military personnel provided training and assistance to over 111,000 members of Iraqi Security Forces, while RAF aircraft conducted thousands of sorties striking more than 2,300 targets. The RAF is expected to continue flying missions over neighboring Syria to prevent IS remnants from establishing footholds.
The withdrawal occurs amid regional tensions involving Iranian-backed militias and follows the recent US-Israel conflict with Iran earlier this year. Iraqi militias targeted remaining coalition forces at Irbil air base during heightened tensions, with RAF personnel shooting down over 100 drones during the initial six weeks of conflict. Prime Minister Zaidi has pledged to disarm Iranian-backed militias, though several powerful factions have resisted his efforts and may gain influence following the US departure. The US will maintain a joint taskforce headquarters in Jordan and continue providing targeted training and intelligence support to Iraqi partners, while also sustaining operations against IS remnants in Syria.
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