WASHINGTON/BAGHDAD, Sept. 30 (Xinhua) -- The United States and its allies have officially ended Operation Inherent Resolve against the Islamic State (IS) in Iraq, the Pentagon said on Wednesday.
The Iraqi Security Forces, including the Peshmerga and other security forces in the Iraqi Kurdistan region, will "lead the continuing effort to secure Iraq and keep IS remnants suppressed," the Pentagon's chief spokesman Sean Parnell said in a statement.
The primary responsibility for addressing Iraq's remaining security challenges now rests with the Iraqi government, the statement said, adding that the United States will continue to provide "targeted training and intelligence support" to its Iraqi partners.
On the same day, Iraqi Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi also announced the conclusion of the international coalition's mission to combat the IS in Iraq.
In 2014, the United States and its allies launched their campaign and deployed forces to fight the IS militants in Iraq and neighboring Syria.
In 2024, Washington and Baghdad agreed on a gradual pullout of U.S. troops from Iraq, seven years after the Iraqi government declared the country's full liberation from the IS militants at the end of 2017.
In August, al-Zaidi said that Sept. 30 remained the firm deadline for ending the U.S.-led coalition's military mission in Iraq and completing its troop withdrawal. ■
