Iraq Prepares to Close Down US-Led Coalition’s Mission  

Iraqi security forces stand near a gate after a reported drone attack on a security headquarters in Baghdad, Iraq, 04 January 2024. (EPA)
Iraqi security forces stand near a gate after a reported drone attack on a security headquarters in Baghdad, Iraq, 04 January 2024. (EPA)
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Iraq Prepares to Close Down US-Led Coalition’s Mission  

Iraqi security forces stand near a gate after a reported drone attack on a security headquarters in Baghdad, Iraq, 04 January 2024. (EPA)
Iraqi security forces stand near a gate after a reported drone attack on a security headquarters in Baghdad, Iraq, 04 January 2024. (EPA)

The Iraqi government is forming a committee to prepare the closing down of the US-led international coalition's mission in the country, Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani's office said on Friday.

Sudani's statement came a day after a US strike killed a militia leader in Baghdad, prompting anger among Iran-aligned groups which demanded the government end the presence of the coalition in Iraq.

"Government is setting the date for the start of the bilateral committee to put arrangements to end the presence of the international coalition forces in Iraq permanently," a statement from the prime minister's office said.

The committee would include representatives of the military coalition, a government official said.

The US military launched Thursday's strike in retaliation against recent attacks on US personnel, the Pentagon said.

The United States has 900 troops in Syria and 2,500 in Iraq on a mission it says aims to advise and assist local forces trying to prevent a resurgence of ISIS, which in 2014 seized large parts of both countries before being defeated.

Iran-aligned militia groups in Iraq and Syria oppose Israel's campaign in the Gaza Strip and hold the US partly responsible.

Sudani has limited control over some Iran-backed factions, whose support he needed to win power a year ago and who now form a powerful bloc in his governing coalition.

"We stress our firm position in ending the existence of the international coalition after the justifications for its existence have ended," Sudani was quoted as saying in the statement.

ISIS claimed responsibility on Thursday for two explosions in Iran that killed nearly 100 people and wounded scores at a memorial for top commander Qassem Soleimani, who was killed in a US drone strike near Baghdad airport in 2020.



Lebanese Politician Accuses Israel of Increasing Bombardment to Wring Concessions

This picture taken from a position in northern Israel, near the border with Lebanon, shows an Israeli flag (L) on a destroyed building, and a Lebanese flag (R) painted on a damaged building in the southern Lebanese village of Mais al-Jabal on November 25, 2024, amid the ongoing war between Israel and Hezbollah. (AFP)
This picture taken from a position in northern Israel, near the border with Lebanon, shows an Israeli flag (L) on a destroyed building, and a Lebanese flag (R) painted on a damaged building in the southern Lebanese village of Mais al-Jabal on November 25, 2024, amid the ongoing war between Israel and Hezbollah. (AFP)
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Lebanese Politician Accuses Israel of Increasing Bombardment to Wring Concessions

This picture taken from a position in northern Israel, near the border with Lebanon, shows an Israeli flag (L) on a destroyed building, and a Lebanese flag (R) painted on a damaged building in the southern Lebanese village of Mais al-Jabal on November 25, 2024, amid the ongoing war between Israel and Hezbollah. (AFP)
This picture taken from a position in northern Israel, near the border with Lebanon, shows an Israeli flag (L) on a destroyed building, and a Lebanese flag (R) painted on a damaged building in the southern Lebanese village of Mais al-Jabal on November 25, 2024, amid the ongoing war between Israel and Hezbollah. (AFP)

Lebanon’s deputy parliament speaker has accused Israel of ramping up its bombardment of Lebanon in order to pressure the government to make concessions in indirect ceasefire negotiations with Hezbollah.

Elias Bou Saab, an ally of the Iran-backed group, said Monday that the pressure has increased because “we are close to the hour that is decisive regarding reaching a ceasefire.”

“We are optimistic, and there is hope, but nothing is guaranteed with a person like (Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu),” Bou Saab told reporters.

Israel has carried out heavy strikes in central Beirut in recent days, while Hezbollah has increased its rocket fire into Israel.

The United States is trying to broker an agreement in which Hezbollah fighters and Israeli forces would withdraw from southern Lebanon and Lebanese troops would patrol the region, along with a UN peacekeeping force.

Israel has demanded freedom of action to strike Hezbollah if it violates the ceasefire, but Bou Saab said that was not part of the emerging agreement.

He also said Israel had accepted that France be part of the committee overseeing the ceasefire after Lebanese officials insisted. There was no immediate confirmation from the Israeli side.

Israel has objected to France being on the committee in the wake of the International Criminal Court’s decision last week to issue arrest warrants for Netanyahu, his former defense minister and a Hamas military commander.

France said it supports the court. It said the question of whether it would arrest Netanyahu if he set foot on French soil was a “complex legal issue” that would have to be worked out.