US forces begin withdrawal from Ain al Asad airbase as US presence in Iraq transitions

By Bridget Toomey | August 22, 2025 |

Arab media reported on August 18 that a US military convoy departed Ain al Asad airbase, a military facility hosting US forces in western Iraq, on its way to Syria. An Iraqi security source speaking to Shafaq News claimed that all US soldiers will leave Ain al Asad by September 15. A limited number of US forces may remain in Baghdad, while others relocate to bases in Syria and Erbil, the capital of Iraqi Kurdistan.

In a statement to the Iraqi News Agency, Hussein Alawi, an advisor to Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al Sudani, said that the international coalition gathered to fight the Islamic State (IS) will end its mission in Baghdad and Ain al Asad airbase next month.

“This development follows Iraq’s agreement with coalition countries to conclude the coalition’s mission within the publicly announced timeframe of 2025 and 2026. Under this agreement, the coalition’s presence at its headquarters in Baghdad and at Ain al-Asad Air Base will officially end in September 2025, marking a new phase of security cooperation focused on advisory roles and capacity-building for Iraqi security forces,” Alawi added.

A US official confirmed to The National that the US mission in Iraq is transitioning to a bilateral security arrangement between Iraq and the United States on schedule.

https://www.longwarjournal.org/archives/2025/08/us-forces-begin-withdrawal-from-ain-al-asad-airbase-as-us-presence-in-iraq-transitions.php