Iraq says international coalition’s withdrawal to be completed by Sept. 30

The withdrawal of international coalition forces from Iraq is gathering pace and is expected to be completed by Sept. 30, Iraqi military spokesman Sabah al-Numan said Wednesday.

The withdrawal is being coordinated directly with the office of Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi, who is also the commander in chief of the armed forces, and is proceeding according to an agreed timetable, al-Numan told Al-Iraqiya TV, according to the Iraqi News Agency (INA).

German forces recently completed their withdrawal from Erbil in northern Iraq after taking part in the US-led international coalition formed in 2014 to fight the ISIS (Daesh) terror group, he said.

German troops had been stationed in Erbil since 2015, focusing on training Iraqi forces and Peshmerga fighters as well as weapons programs and aerial reconnaissance before their withdrawal was completed Wednesday.

The drawdown was coordinated directly with the prime minister’s office, which is overseeing the movement of departing forces and equipment by land and air, al-Numan added.

Facilities previously used by German forces at Erbil airport will be handed over to airport authorities, while other military sites will be transferred to the Peshmerga forces, he said.

The handover follows the transfer of other former coalition bases, including Ain al-Asad and Balad, to Iraq’s Defense Ministry after the coalition ended its missions there, al-Numan stated.

Iraq announced in January that it had completed the first phase of its plan to end the coalition’s mission after US forces withdrew from Ain al-Asad air base in western Anbar province and handed the facility over to Iraqi forces.

The second and final phase, which will continue until Sept. 30, 2026, has begun and includes supporting counter-ISIS operations in Syria from Erbil.

Al-Numan said the prime minister had also ordered the formation of a committee to determine the nature of Iraq’s relationship with coalition countries after Sept. 30.

Future cooperation will focus on continued coordination, particularly intelligence sharing, information exchange and weapons programs, he said.

The plan to end the coalition’s mission stems from an agreement announced by Baghdad and Washington in September 2024. It calls for a gradual transition from the coalition’s military mission to bilateral security ties with member countries, with the process due to conclude in September 2026.

Al-Numan said departing forces are following security procedures and maintaining continuous coordination to secure routes and destinations, with movements subject to official approvals and daily reports submitted to the commander in chief.

The US-led coalition was formed in 2014 to fight ISIS, which at the time controlled large parts of Iraq and Syria. Iraq declared in December 2017 that it had fully retaken its territory from ISIS, though the terror group has continued to carry out sporadic attacks.