Coalition has handed over all its bases and no forces will stay after Sept. 30, Maan says

BAGHDAD — The international coalition has handed over all its bases and headquarters in Iraq and none of its combat or training forces will remain after Sept. 30, Security Media Cell chief Saad Maan said.

“The international coalition has handed over all its bases and headquarters to the Iraqi authorities,” Maan told Al Jazeera. “There are no combat or military forces of the international coalition in Iraq. There will be no coalition combat or training forces after Sept. 30, and Iraq is ready to take over and manage security after the coalition’s withdrawal.” Relations with coalition members would move to bilateral arrangements once the mission ends, he said.

The date completes a drawdown agreed by Baghdad and Washington in 2024 to end the mission set up in 2014 to fight the Islamic State group. Advisers left bases and command headquarters in federal Iraq in January, including Ain al-Asad and the Joint Operations Command headquarters, while a presence in the Kurdistan Region continued supporting operations in Syria. KRG Interior Minister Rebar Ahmed said this month that coalition personnel were leaving the Region daily and that Baghdad should build bilateral security ties to avoid a vacuum.

The coalition has also been Iraq’s main defence against drones in the north: its aircraft shot down 10 bomb-laden drones over Erbil governorate on Sept. 2. The spokesperson for the commander-in-chief said this month that air defence systems from South Korea, Turkey and the United States were expected soon, without giving dates. France agreed last week to continue military cooperation after the mission, including a letter of intent on air defence, and the coalition’s financial support for the Peshmerga ended this week with the expiry of a four-year agreement.