United States | Eyeing the exits
Why Joe Biden is ending America’s combat mission in Iraq
Though largely symbolic, the move is part of a transformation of America’s posture in the wider Middle East
WHEN THE first American bombs began falling on Iraq on March 19th 2003, President George W. Bush predicted a hard slog, requiring “sustained commitment”. Yet even he might not have imagined that American combat soldiers would remain in Iraq 18 years later, fathers and sons serving in the same war.
This article appeared in the United States section of the print edition under the headline “Eyeing the exits”
United States July 31st 2021
From the July 31st 2021 edition
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