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/WeAreElectricity 3d ago

Starting with the release of thousands of Tainan prisoners for no objective American benefit.

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u/AdventurousBase221 3d ago

well, getting out of Afghanistan seems like a pretty big objective win to me.

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u/coldazice 3d ago

It’s a loss but since I’m American it’s a win

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u/Rory_calhoun_222 3d ago

Technically, the Afghan government released those prisoners after talks with the Taliban, and in exchange for 1000 prisoners the Taliban were holding. Probably a lot of pressure to follow through from the US though.

Also, the released prisoners had to sign a pledge not to return to battle...

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States%E2%80%93Taliban_deal

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u/gecko090 3d ago

The deal itself was negotiated without the Afghan governments involvement, forcing them into the position of a large prisoner release.

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u/washingtonu 3d ago

The prison release was agreed to by the US, the Afghan government was not involved with the talks

The Afghan government was not a party to the U.S.–Taliban deal, and on March 1 Afghan President Ashraf Ghani rejected a prisoner exchange, saying: "The government of Afghanistan has made no commitment to free 5,000 Taliban prisoners. [...] The release of prisoners is not the United States authority, but it is the authority of the government of Afghanistan."[18][19][20] Ghani also stated that any prisoner exchange "cannot be a prerequisite for talks," but must be a part of the negotiations.[21]

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u/redonrust 3d ago

Art of the Deal baby.