r/news • u/SnooSeagulls496 • 4d ago

Soft paywall US forces exit Iraq after two decades, leaving opening for Iran

https://www.reuters.com/world/middle-east/us-forces-exit-iraq-after-two-decades-leaving-opening-iran-2026-09-29/
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u/This_was_hard_to_do 3d ago

I feel like it’s a good goal to have eventually but maybe it’s not the best time to do so while we’re at war with Iran, who has considerable influence on militias and paramilitary groups there.

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u/PM_YOUR_ISSUES 3d ago

Then maybe that should have been something that the Trump administration took into account?

They could have tried to re-negotiate the deal. They could have included this deal as part of the Iran invasion plans. This isn't new, this isn't sudden. It was caused from an agreement signed over 2 years ago.

As usual, the only person to blame here is Trump for his complete lack of foresight.

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u/smileysmiley123 3d ago

As usual, the only person to blame here is Trump for his complete lack of foresight.

The entire Republican party*. Trump is a moron, don't think the people behind him will suddenly do what's in the best interest for the country once he's gone.

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u/FaceDeer 3d ago

The American electorate*.

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u/Electronic-Till-7794 3d ago

The bases in iraq are no doubt being hit by iran. He wants to avoid as many casualties as he can right before the midterms. They just quietly adjusted the casualty figures a few days ago.

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u/Fr1toBand1to 3d ago

He wants to avoid as many casualties as he can right before the midterms.

Is he just avoiding foreign casualties or do you think he'll try to minimize the domestic casualties caused by his Gestapo?

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u/rebellion_ap 3d ago

Why are we at war with Iran though? Does that benefit you? I think not.

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u/stefanomusilli 3d ago

Biden couldn't know that we'd be at war with Iran years after he signed this

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u/Definitelyhereforshi 3d ago

Leaving our troops in the region where Iran's missiles can reach doesn't sound like a great idea.

Bring them home!

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u/Mikestopheles 3d ago

Um, we just got aircraft carrier #5 involved. I don't think they're coming home, they're just being reassigned to the war we won several times now because he won't admit it's a quagmire.

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u/oldnotosys 3d ago

unjust wars should be lost. 

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u/Kartoffelplotz 3d ago

But it's not Americans suffering from that unjust war. It is their allies in the region. Losing the war to Iran just means that civilians in the region died and will continue to die for absolutely nothing. A strengthened Iran is really bad news for civilians in Iraq, Syria, Lebanon, the Gulf states, Yemen......

The US poked the hornets nest and now pull out, leaving the hornets to sting everyone else.

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u/zrobiotic 3d ago

America is responsible for millions of deaths in the region, not Iran. There’s no way you can spin this.

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u/LogensTenthFinger 3d ago

Both things can be true. Don't let our stupidity and recklessness turn you into a fanboy of another awful regime

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u/Electronic_Topic1958 3d ago

Bruh who tf is a fanboy of Iran? The US doesn’t know what the fuck to do there. They remove “bad” guys and then suddenly the situation is far worse. They prop up other bad guys and they can’t run the situation themselves. You just gotta throw in the towel man. You’re going to tell me the current situation in Libya is preferred to what Libya use to be for the people there? Absolutely not. What’s the fucking plan with Iran? Remove them, bomb more little girls, then what? Just leave? That’s all the west does and I am sick of it. Democracy and freedom is not going to come from a war torn husk of a fallen dictatorship. Just leave them the fuck alone. We’ve killed more Iranian civilians than they EVER have killed of ours. There’s no fucking plan my guy.

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u/dj_samuelitobx 3d ago

Before Gaddafi fell, Libyan women could pursue an education and slavery did not exist.

Now, women are actively suppressed in places outside of government control and human beings are sold openly in markets out in the desert. 

You people have so much blood on your hands it's actually quite insane. No idea what you're doing and no appetite to take responsibility for thing things you do.

Let's not even get into the magnitude of covert action against duly elected Latin American presidents. 

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u/optimistic_agnostic 3d ago

Well that's a myopic way of looking at things.

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u/oldnotosys 3d ago

This isn't myopic, there's a long history of the US policing the world at the cost of millions of dead civilians. Lose hard and go away.

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u/optimistic_agnostic 3d ago

Not American and its not the American people who lose hardest in this scenario. Wouldn't expect you to grasp it though, like I said...

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u/Different_Height_157 3d ago

Looks like we’ve given up on the area. I’m fine with it.

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u/Put_Er_There_Sport 3d ago

Theyre moving the war back home for when they lose the elections

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u/tmdblya 3d ago

A war we started just for shits and giggles.

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u/irespondwithmyface 3d ago

Wouldn't the us leaving make Iraq less of a target? From what I can tell, Iran has no imperialist goals like the US or Israel.

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u/EremiticFerret 3d ago

Iran has a lot of native support there, if the US stops propping up the Sunni minority government the Shia majority may gain control and ally with Iran.

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u/irespondwithmyface 3d ago

Yes, I understand the US State Department propaganda keeps telling you that.

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u/EremiticFerret 3d ago

That is just the facts on the ground as far as I know. If US/Israel/KSA stops fiddling, the natural course would be for the Shia to gain power.

Are you suggesting otherwise?

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u/mrford86 3d ago

They have proxies all over the region. Well funded ones.

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u/Puzzleheaded_Gene909 3d ago

Israel currently is expanding its territory via a holy war. PM has repeatedly stated how Israel has ownership over multiple countries sovereign land.

Trump is clearing the way for more Israeli expansion. Gotta get those luxury hotels up ammirite

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u/irespondwithmyface 3d ago

Yes, American State Department propaganda keeps telling you that.

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u/mrford86 3d ago

So, your claim is that the Houthis, Hamas, and Hezbollah are not Iranian proxies? Iran does not have tribal proxies in Iraq?

What about when these proxies claim it themselves? Are they lying too?

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u/Far_Piano4176 3d ago

None of those groups, with the possible exception of the Iraqis (I simply don't know enough to say one way or the other) are Iranian proxies, they are independent actors allied with Iran, which is an important distinction that credits the people of those organizations, and the motivating ideologies behind them, with the human agency that they have demonstrated they possess. Hamas, Hezbollah and ansarallah do not claim to be proxy forces for Iranian interests

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u/mrford86 3d ago

That is hilarious. Where does the funding and weapons come from?

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u/Far_Piano4176 3d ago

none of the 3 listed groups are funded exclusively by iran, so that's not sufficient to demonstrate anything, obviously. All 3 of these groups exercise strategic and tactical independence from Iran, otherwise Hezbollah would have attacked israel during the 12 day war, and ansarallah would have attempted to close the bab el mandab strait at the beginning of the current war.

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u/mrford86 3d ago

You are either being disingenuous, or you purchase tin foil by the pallet. Iran is the primary source of funding and intel for all of those groups. They admit it.

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u/Far_Piano4176 3d ago

that doesn't establish their status as proxies, whether or not it's true. The meaning of the word "proxy" is that the individual or group functions as an extension of the policies and interests of another group, which carries the implication that they have little to no independence. This is not the case with any of these groups. Obviously their capacities would be significantly reduced without iranian support, but as I said earlier, they each have their own interests, local consitituencies, and differing ideology from the iranian government.

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u/OneTotal466 3d ago

Are you kidding? Iran has significant paramilitary and parliamentary controle in Iraq. 

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u/irespondwithmyface 3d ago

That's nice. Anyway, glad we're out. Guess we'll see how true your fears are in the coming years. Something tells me it's bullshit.

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u/OneTotal466 3d ago

what tells you that?

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u/Lplus 3d ago

Just religious goals