Iran-aligned group claims US forces have withdrawn from Victory Base

BAGHDAD — Saraya Awliya al-Dam claimed Monday that U.S. and NATO forces had completed a withdrawal from Victory Base near Baghdad International Airport, saying the pullout took place via cargo aircraft and vehicles toward Jordan — a claim that could not be independently verified.

The group’s military spokesperson Abu Mahdi al-Jaafari said forces had departed and that two undisclosed sites inside the base had been destroyed before the withdrawal. He said the facility had been handed over to Iraq’s Counter Terrorism Service, adding that “no other Iraqi forces” would enter. He warned that any return of foreign forces would trigger renewed attacks, saying “the eyes of the Islamic resistance will remain vigilant at all times and its hands on the trigger.”

Al-Jaafari also alleged that U.S. forces violated a truce after withdrawing by striking PMF units in Jurf al-Nasr, and called on Iraq’s parliament to pass legislation related to the PMF and “activate the decision to remove foreign forces and cancel agreements with the American occupier.”

The claim follows a five-day ultimatum issued Sunday by Iran-aligned factions under the Islamic Resistance in Iraq umbrella demanding a full U.S. withdrawal from the country. That statement warned that if forces refused to remove weapons and air defense systems, “we will remove their lives,” and said no new Iraqi government would be accepted “unless it bears the imprint of the Islamic Resistance.”

Victory Base, also known as Camp Victory or the Logistics Support Area, has been repeatedly struck by drone and rocket attacks since the regional war began Feb. 28, including strikes Sunday evening that set off explosions heard across the capital.