Zaidi rejected request for part of coalition to stay, spokesperson says

BAGHDAD — Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi turned down a request for part of the international coalition to remain in Iraq beyond Sept. 30, the deputy head of the Security Media Cell said, without saying who made it.

“When the commander-in-chief announced the date for ending the mission of the international coalition, he made a commitment before the people and the countries,” Maj. Gen. Tahseen al-Khafaji told Al-Iraqiya, adding that the refusal showed “the decision is moving forward without any retreat.” He gave no detail of the proposed arrangement. 964media contacted the Combined Joint Task Force–Operation Inherent Resolve for comment and had no response by publication.

Iraqi forces are ready to take over bases, headquarters and borders, Khafaji said, and Zaidi has confidence in the defence and interior ministries, the Popular Mobilization Forces, the intelligence and national security agencies and the Peshmerga, citing their record against the Islamic State group and in securing large religious gatherings. He called Sept. 30 “a sovereign and national day by every measure.”

The drawdown follows a 2024 agreement between Baghdad and Washington to wind down the coalition mission set up in 2014. Advisers left bases and command headquarters in federal Iraq in January, including Ain al-Asad, while a presence in Erbil continued supporting operations against the Islamic State group in Syria, and that remaining mission is due to conclude by the end of this month. Iraqi officials say ending it does not end security cooperation with the United States, and Zaidi ordered a committee during his July visit to Washington to negotiate the framework for bilateral arrangements covering counterterrorism, intelligence sharing, training and capabilities.

Government spokesperson Haider al-Aboudi said Monday that the withdrawal and transfer of sites were proceeding on schedule. Zaidi has said armed factions would have no justification to remain outside state authority after the mission ends, while officials have since stressed that Sept. 30 is the coalition deadline rather than a date for factions to surrender weapons.