Iraq postpones announcement date for end to US-led coalition mission

PHOTO CAPTION: A U.S. service member fires his weapon during a training competition at Al Asad Air Base (AAAB), Iraq, Dec. 13, 2023. (U.S. Army photo by Staff Sgt. Quince Lanford via U.S. Defense Visual Information Distribution Service)

CAIRO (Reuters) -Iraq's foreign ministry said on Thursday that an announcement on an end date for the U.S.-led coalition's mission has been postponed due to the "latest developments." It did not identify the developments.

The U.S.-Iraq Higher Military Commission, comprising officials from both countries, discussed details of withdrawing advisers from military sites, the foreign ministry said in a statement said.

It said the only remaining issues before reaching a deal on ending the coalition's presence in Iraq were agreement on an announcement date, logistical aspects and other details.

A foreign ministry official told Reuters that the announcement on the end of the coalition's presence is expected in early September.

A rare ally of both the U.S. and Iran, Iraq hosts 2,500 U.S. troops and has Iran-backed militias linked to its security forces. It has witnessed escalating tit-for-tat attacks since the Israel-Hamas war in Gaza erupted in October.

On Aug. 5, at least five U.S. personnel were injured in an attack against a military base in Iraq.

Iraq wants troops from the U.S.-led military coalition to begin withdrawing in September and to formally end the coalition's work by September 2025, Iraqi sources have said, with some U.S. forces likely to remain in a newly negotiated advisory capacity.

(Reporting by Jaidaa Taha in Cairo and Ahmed Rasheed in BaghdadEditing by Hugh Lawson and Matthew Lewis)