Goodbye to All That

Obama Declares End of Iraq War

Says presidential focus will shift to economy.

After seven years, two presidents, 4,400 U.S. military causalities and some 30,000 injuries, President Barack Obama on Tuesday night announced the end of the combat mission in Iraq. Speaking from the Oval Office for the second time, Obama declared “Operation Iraqi Freedom is over” and said the Iraqi people will now be responsible for their own security. He said that “ending this war is not only in Iraq’s interest – it is in our own. The United States has paid a huge price to put the future of Iraq into the hands of its own people.” The last combat forces left Iraq on August 18, and some 50,000 military advisers will remain in country. "Now it's time to turn the page," Obama said, shifting his focus to the flagging U.S. economic recovery and putting Americans back to work.