Iraqi Parliament Calls for Foreign Troops to Leave

Iraq’s parliament has approved a bill calling on US and other Western troops to leave the country, a day after the Washington-led anti-Islamic State coalition temporarily halted operations in the wake of the assassination in Baghdad of Quds Force chief Qasem Soleimani. “The Iraqi government must work to end the presence of any foreign troops on Iraqi soil and prohibit them from using its land, air space or water for any reason,” read in part the resolution. While the bill’s passage is non-binding, Iraqi Prime Minister Adel Abdel-Mahdi previously urged lawmakers to move to immediately end the foreign troop presence. In response, US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said that some 5,000 American soldiers remained committed to “help[ing] the Iraqi people get what it is they deserve and continue our mission there to take down terrorism from [the Islamic State] and others in the region.” Iraq has become the central battleground in an ongoing low-intensity conflict between Iran and the US, which invaded Baghdad and toppled Saddam Hussein in 2003.