U.S. Military Pauses Training Missions in Iraq for Coronavirus
An undisclosed portion of the roughly 5,000 U.S. troops in Iraq will return home, and the command suggests they are unlikely to come back.
REUTERS
The U.S. military command in Iraq announced Friday that all training missions for the Iraqi security forces are on hold during the novel coronavirus outbreak. A statement from the command portrayed the move as both an Iraqi decision and a “short-term” force protection step.
But it will lead to an undisclosed portion of the roughly 5,000 U.S. troops in Iraq to return home, and the command suggests that they’re unlikely to return. “Looking ahead, we anticipate the Coalition supporting the Iraqi Security Forces from fewer bases with fewer people,” the command said. That’s likely influenced as well by the continued rocketing of Iraqi bases by Iran-backed militias. It also follows Thursday’s announced freeze of deployments in and out of Afghanistan.
Representatives from the command did not immediately respond to questions from The Daily Beast.
See more of our coverage in your search results.
Got a tip? Send it to The Daily Beast here.
Register below to read this article for free or subscribe
to unlock unlimited access to The Daily Beast.
Monthly
$1
First month then $5.99/month
Annual
$35
First year then $59.99/year
Premium
$79
First year then $119.99/year
*Substack access provided by the next business day, using your subscription email. Choosing the Premium plan constitutes your permission to share your subscription email with Substack and your agreement to Substack’s Privacy Policy.
Already have an account? Sign In
Looks like you already have a subscription!
You're all set!
Thanks for subscribing.