Iraqi Parliament votes to expel US military
Lawmakers voted on Sunday (January 5) in favour of a resolution that calls for ending foreign military presence in the country. The resolutions main aim is to get the US to withdraw some 5,000 US troops present in different parts of Iraq.
Days after a US strike killed top Iranian general Qassem Soleimani in Baghdad, Iraq’s Parliament, dominated by Shias, voted to expel the US military from the country.
Iraqi lawmakers voted on Sunday (January 5) in favour of a resolution that called for ending foreign military presence in the country. The resolution’s main aim is to get the US to withdraw some 5,000 US troops present in different parts of Iraq.
The resolution specifically called for ending an agreement, according to which Washington sent troops to Iraq more than four years ago to help in the fight against the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS).
The resolution was backed by most Shiite members of parliament, who hold a majority of seats, while many Sunni and Kurdish legislators failed to turn up for the session, apparently because they oppose abolishing the deal.
The killing of General Soleimani has dramatically increasing tensions in the region which is infamous for its sectarian divide.
