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The U.S. military has completed the withdrawal of American forces and equipment from Erbil Air Base in Iraq, ending its Operation Inherent Resolve mission, U.S. Central Command announced Wednesday.
The departure closes the Iraq chapter of the U.S.-led military mission launched against ISIS in 2014, while shifting primary responsibility for the country’s security to Iraqi forces. The broader counter-ISIS campaign is not ending, however, with the U.S.-led task force relocating its headquarters to Jordan and operations continuing in Syria.
“Job well done to the tens of thousands of American service members, diplomats, and civilian personnel who answered the call in Iraq,” CENTCOM Commander Admiral Brad Cooper said.
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“Because of your grit, sacrifice and professionalism, ISIS no longer poses a systemic threat to Iraq’s national security and Iraqi security forces, including the Peshmerga and other Iraqi Kurdistan Region security forces, now possess the capacity, leadership, and operational independence to unilaterally manage threats to their homeland,” Cooper said.
Chief Pentagon spokesman Sean Parnell called the departure the formal conclusion of Operation Inherent Resolve in Iraq and said it marked a transition “from a wartime coalition mission to an Iraqi-led security effort supported by a more normal bilateral security relationship.”
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The Pentagon said the U.S. will continue providing targeted training and intelligence support to Iraqi forces even after the withdrawal, while Iraqi security forces, including the Peshmerga, take the lead in keeping ISIS remnants suppressed.
Erbil Air Base in northern Iraq served as the main operational hub for Combined Joint Task Force — Operation Inherent Resolve and hosted most of the roughly 1,500 American and coalition forces supporting counter-ISIS operations, according to CENTCOM.
U.S. and coalition forces began leaving federal Iraq last October as Washington and Baghdad moved toward a bilateral defense relationship. The final removal of personnel and equipment from Erbil completed that transition on Sept. 30. The withdrawal followed an agreement reached between Washington and Baghdad under the Biden administration in 2024 and carried forward under the Trump administration.
Combined Joint Task Force — Operation Inherent Resolve remains active and is now headquartered in Jordan, according to CENTCOM. U.S. forces also continue counter-ISIS operations in Syria alongside coalition partners and the Syrian government.
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The U.S. has roughly 4,000 troops stationed in Jordan, where American forces will continue monitoring the ISIS threat. Muwaffaq Salti Air Base hosts U.S. combat aircraft and has itself become a target during the conflict with Iran. Three U.S. service members were killed in an Iranian attack on the base in July.
“As we step back and hand full primary responsibility for Iraq’s security to the Government of Iraq and the brave people of Iraq, U.S. and coalition forces stationed across the region will remain ready to respond to any ISIS threats that arise,” Cooper said.
“Maintaining our vigilance and readiness is essential to protecting the U.S. homeland and strengthening regional security,” he added.
The withdrawal ends a U.S. military presence in Iraq that was reestablished in 2014, when Iraqi authorities sought international assistance as ISIS captured large areas of the country. U.S. troops had previously left Iraq in 2011 following the 2003 invasion that toppled Saddam Hussein.
For the last several years, roughly 2,500 U.S. troops have been stationed in Iraq. The majority departed last year, leaving hundreds of troops in the northern Kurdish region until the final withdrawal.
The final departure comes as Iraq faces a separate security challenge from powerful Iran-backed militias operating inside the country. Baghdad has sought to bring weapons held by non-state groups under government control, but some of the most influential militias have resisted disarming.
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The Pentagon explicitly identified those militias as one of the security challenges Baghdad will now be expected to confront.
“The primary responsibility for addressing Iraq’s remaining security challenges, including ISIS remnants and Iran-aligned militias that undermine Iraqi sovereignty and regional stability, now rests with the Government of Iraq,” Parnell said.
The withdrawal also reduces the number of U.S. military targets inside Iraq after American forces there faced repeated attacks by Iran-aligned groups following Hamas’ Oct. 7, 2023, attack on Israel. During this year’s war with Iran, seven of the 18 U.S. service members killed in Iranian attacks were killed in Iraq, according to Fox News reporting.
The withdrawal has drawn sharply different reactions inside Iraq. Iran-aligned groups celebrated the U.S. departure, while officials in the country’s Kurdish region have raised concerns about the loss of American air-defense capabilities amid drone and missile threats.
Kurdish officials say their region has faced more than 1,000 Iranian drone and ballistic missile attacks since the war with Iran began Feb. 28, adding to concerns over the removal of U.S. forces and air-defense capabilities.
Thousands of ISIS fighters also remain in Iraq and Syria despite the collapse of the terror group’s organized military threat. The Iraqi government has said its forces will continue operations against ISIS, while the Pentagon said the U.S. remains committed to preventing the group from reconstituting from Iraqi territory.
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CENTCOM said U.S. and coalition forces elsewhere in the region will remain prepared to respond if ISIS again poses a threat.
“The United States supports a strong sovereign Iraq that secures its borders, protects its people, and serves as the foundation for deeper commercial, diplomatic, and security cooperation between our two countries,” Parnell said.
Fox News’ Liz Friden and the Associated Press contributed to this report.
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