On Sept. 30, 2026, the U.S. military completed its withdrawal from Erbil Air Base in northern Iraq, closing out the 12-year Operation Inherent Resolve mission and ending more than two decades of continuous American military presence in the country, U.S. Central Command announced.
Why it matters: It's the close of one of America's longest military engagements since Vietnam — a deliberate bet that Iraqi forces can hold the line against ISIS remnants on their own, even as Iran-aligned militias celebrate the U.S. exit and Kurdish officials warn of a new security gap against drone and missile threats.
Driving the news:
CENTCOM announced the “orderly departure” of U.S. forces and equipment from Erbil Air Base on Sept. 30, formally ending Operation Inherent Resolve in Iraq — via Daily Wire, Fox News.
Roughly 1,500 American and coalition troops were stationed at Erbil, the last operational U.S. hub in the country, before the final pullout — via Fox News.
The exit caps a drawdown that began in October 2025 under a 2024 agreement between Washington and Baghdad to wind down the military mission — via Daily Wire.
Combined Joint Task Force-Operation Inherent Resolve has relocated its headquarters to Jordan, with counter-ISIS operations continuing in Syria — via Fox News, Daily Wire.
By the numbers:
23 years: length of continuous U.S. military presence in Iraq, from the 2003 invasion to the Sept. 30, 2026 withdrawal — via Daily Wire.
12 years: length of Operation Inherent Resolve, the anti-ISIS mission launched in 2014 — via Fox News, Daily Wire.
~170,000: peak U.S. troop levels in Iraq in 2007, versus roughly 1,500 at the final Erbil hub before withdrawal — via Daily Wire, Fox News.
4,400+: U.S. service members killed in the Iraq war and its aftermath since 2003 — via Daily Wire.
What they're saying:
CENTCOM Commander Adm. Brad Cooper: “Job well done to the tens of thousands of American service members, diplomats, and civilian personnel who answered the call in Iraq,” adding that “ISIS no longer poses a systemic threat to Iraq's national security.” — via Fox News.
President Trump: “We came to fight a caliphate, and there is no longer a caliphate.” — via Daily Wire.
The other side:
Kurdish regional officials voiced concern about losing American air-defense cover against drone and missile threats now that U.S. forces have left — via Fox News.
Iran-aligned militias celebrated the pullout, with some casting it as proof of Iraq's “full sovereignty” — via Daily Wire.
Secretary of War Pete Hegseth said in July that Iraq must “assert its sovereignty and disarm the Iran-aligned militias responsible for 600+ attacks on U.S. personnel this spring,” a reminder the militia threat remains unresolved even as American troops depart — via Townhall.
What's next:
Combined Joint Task Force-Operation Inherent Resolve will keep running counter-ISIS operations from its new Jordan headquarters, with Coalition partners still active against ISIS remnants in Syria — via Fox News, Daily Wire.
The U.S.-Iraq relationship is shifting to a bilateral defense framework, with Iraqi Security Forces and the Kurdish Peshmerga taking the lead on anti-ISIS operations going forward — via Townhall.
The bottom line: After 23 years and more than 4,400 American deaths, the U.S. military is out of Iraq — but the fight against ISIS remnants and Iran's regional proxies isn't over, it's just moved next door to Syria and Jordan, leaving Baghdad and Erbil to manage the security gap on their own.
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