US forces would leave Iraq if Baghdad asked: Diplomat

By Ibrahim Saleh

BAGHDAD (AA) – U.S. forces would leave Iraq if Baghdad requested it, Joey Hood, chargé d'affaires at the U.S. embassy in Baghdad, said Tuesday.

Speaking to reporters, he added: “The current presence of U.S. forces has come at the request of Iraq’s federal government.”

Hood went on to deny the presence of any U.S. bases in Iraq, only “trainers and advisers”.

Roughly 5,000 U.S. troops have remained in Iraq since Washington cobbled an international coalition together in 2014 with the ostensible aim of fighting the Daesh terrorist group.

Shortly after its sudden appearance in mid-2014, the terrorist group overran vast swathes of territory in northern and western Iraq.

In addition to training Iraqi forces, the U.S.-led coalition continues to provide the Iraqi army with air support, allowing it to hunt down and destroy Daesh’s lingering presence.

In late 2017, Baghdad declared victory over the terrorist group following a three-year war that ended with the fall of Mosul, the group’s last remaining stronghold in Iraq.

The Iraqi army, however, continues to wage operations against Daesh "sleeper cells" that allegedly remain active in certain parts of the country.