AP
U.S. Army Staff Sgt. Elama Palemene is kissed by his wife Annaden, right, and children Ko’ Elani, left, and Pe’ Ela during an early morning welcome home ceremony for about 300 U.S. Army 1st Cavalry 2nd Brigade soldiers returning home from deployment in Iraq at Fort Hood, TX, Sunday, Dec. 18, 2011. (AP Photo/Erich Schlegel)
The last US soldiers rolled out of Iraq across the border into neighbouring Kuwait at daybreak yesterday, whooping, fist bumping and hugging each other in a burst of joy and relief. Their convoy’s exit marked the end of a bitterly divisive war that raged for nearly nine years and left Iraq shattered, with troubling questions lingering over whether the Arab nation would remain a steadfast US ally.
The mission cost nearly 4 500 American lives and more than 100 000 Iraqi lives and $800 billion (R6 700bn) from the US Treasury. The question of whether it was worth it all is yet unanswered.
The last convoy of heavily armoured personnel carriers made a largely uneventful journey out except for a few equipment malfunctions along the way.
When the convoy crossed into Kuwait the atmosphere was subdued inside one of the vehicles, with no shouting or yelling. Along the road, a small group of Iraqi soldiers waved to the departing US troops.
“My heart goes out to the Iraqis,” said Warrant Officer John Jewell, acknowledging the challenges ahead.
“The innocent always pay the bill.”
The last convoy of solders from the US Army’s 3rd Brigade, 1st Cavalry Division crosses the border from Iraq into Kuwait, Sunday, Dec. 18, 2011. The brigade’s special troops battalion are the last American soldiers to leave Iraq. The U.S. military announced Saturday night that the last American troops have left Iraq as the nearly nine-year war ends. (AP Photo/Maya Alleruzzo)
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Soldiers standing just inside the crossing on the Kuwaiti side of the border waved and snapped photos as the final trucks crossed over. Soldiers slid shut the gate behind the final truck.
“I’m pretty excited,” said Sergeant Ashley Vorhees.
“I’m out of Iraq. It’s all smooth sailing from here.”
US officials acknowledged the cost in blood and dollars was high, but tried to paint a picture of victory – for both the troops and the Iraqi people now freed of a dictator and on a path to democracy.
But gnawing questions remain.
Will Iraqis be able to forge their new government amid the still stubborn sectarian clashes? And will Iraq be able to defend itself and remain independent in a region fraught with turmoil and still steeped in insurgent threats?
Many Iraqis, however, are nervous and uncertain about the future. Their relief at the end of Saddam Hussein, who was hanged on the last day of 2006, was tempered by a long and vicious war that was launched to find nonexistent weapons of mass destruction and nearly plunged the nation into full-scale civil war.
Some criticised the US for leaving behind a destroyed country with thousands of widows and orphans, a people deeply divided along sectarian lines and without rebuilding the devastated infrastructure.
Some Iraqis celebrated the exit of what they called American occupiers, neither invited nor welcome in a proud country.
Others said that while grateful for US help ousting Saddam, the war went on too long. A majority of Americans would agree, according to opinion polls.
The low-key exit stood in sharp contrast to the high-octane start of the war, which began before dawn on March 20, 2003, with an air strike in southern Baghdad where Saddam was believed to be hiding.
The final few thousand US troops left Iraq in orderly caravans and tightly scheduled flights. They pulled out at night in the hope it would be more secure and got out in time for at least some of the troops to join families at home for the Christmas holidays.
Specialist Jesse Jones, a 23-year-old who volunteered to be on the last convoy, said: “It’s just an honour to be able to serve your country and say that you helped close out the war in Iraq.”
The final troops completed the massive logistical challenge of shuttering hundreds of bases and combat outposts, and moving more than 50 000 troops and their equipment out of Iraq over the last year – while still conducting training, security assistance and counter-terrorism battles.
As of Thursday, there were two US bases and less than 4 000 US troops in Iraq – a dramatic drop from the roughly 500 military installations and as many as 170 000 troops during the surge ordered by President George W Bush in 2007, when violence and raging sectarianism gripped the country.
All US troops were due to be out of Iraq by the end of the year, but officials are likely to meet that goal a bit before then.
The total US departure is a bit earlier than planned, and military leaders worry that it is a bit premature for the still maturing Iraqi security forces.
Despite President Barack Obama’s earlier contention that all American troops would be home for Christmas, at least 4 000 soldiers will remain in Kuwait for some months.
Obama stopped short of calling the US effort in Iraq a victory in an interview.
“I would describe our troops as having succeeded in the mission of giving to the Iraqis their country in a way that gives them a chance for a successful future,” he said.
The US plans to keep a robust diplomatic presence in Iraq, foster a deep relationship with the nation and maintain a strong military force in the region.
– Sapa-AP
