In this Saturday, Dec. 17, 2011 photo, US Army soldiers from 3rd Brigade, 1st Cavalry Division, based at Fort Hood, Texas, inspect their body armor at Camp Adder during final preparations for the last American convoy 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)
In this Saturday, Dec. 17, 2011 photo, US Army soldiers from 3rd Brigade, 1st Cavalry Division, based at Fort Hood, Texas, inspect their body armor at Camp Adder during final preparations for the last American convoy 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)
In this Saturday, Dec. 17, 2011 photo, Gen. Lloyd Austin, the top US commander in Iraq, shakes hands with soldiers from the 25th Infantry Division on board a plane at Camp Adder moments before the unit leaves 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)
In this Saturday, Dec. 17, 2011 photo, a US Army officer waves at soldiers from the 25th Infantry Division on board a plane at Camp Adder moments before the unit, the last headquarters battalion, leaves 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)
US Army soldiers watch a convoy from the US Army's 3rd Brigade, 1st Cavalry Division crossing 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)
In this Saturday, Dec. 17, 2011 photo, U.S. Army Maj. Jerrold Castro, from Guam, right, plays a ukulele while waiting for a flight along with other soldiers from the 25th Infantry Division at Camp Adder moments before the unit leaves Iraq. Maj. Castro commands a signal company in the Headquarters Batalion of the 25th Infantry division, the last headquarters unit to depart Iraq. The U.S. military says the last American troops have left Iraq as the nearly nine-year war ends. (AP Photo/Maya Alleruzzo)
KHABARI CROSSING, Kuwait (AP) ? The last U.S. soldiers rolled out of Iraq across the border to neighboring Kuwait at daybreak Sunday, whooping, fist bumping and hugging each other in a burst of joy and relief. Their 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 will remain a steadfast U.S. ally.
The mission cost nearly 4,500 American and well more than 100,000 Iraqi lives and $800 billion from the U.S. Treasury. The question of whether it was worth it all is yet unanswered.
Capt. Mark Askew, a 28-year-old from Tampa, Florida who was among the last soldiers to leave, said the answer to that question will depend on what type of country and government Iraq ends up with years from now, whether they are democratic, respect human rights and are considered an American ally.
"It depends on what Iraq does after we leave," he said, speaking ahead of the exit. "I don't expect them to turn into South Korea or Japan overnight."
The war that began in a blaze of aerial bombardment meant to shock and awe the dictator Saddam Hussein and his loyalists ended quietly and with minimal fanfare.
U.S. 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, 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 sectarian civil war.
Some criticized the Americans 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 U.S. 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 airstrike in southern Baghdad where Saddam was believed to be hiding. U.S. and allied ground forces then stormed across the featureless Kuwaiti desert, accompanied by reporters, photographers and television crews embedded with the troops.
The final few thousand U.S. troops left Iraq in orderly caravans and tightly scheduled flights. They pulled out at night in hopes 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.
The last convoy of MRAPs, heavily armored personnel carriers, arrived in Kuwait around 7:30 a.m. local time (0430GMT) Sunday. 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.
"It's just an honor to be able to serve your country and say that you helped close out the war in Iraq," said Spc. Jesse Jones, who volunteered to be on the last convoy.
"It's all major things. Not a lot of people can say that they did huge things like that that will probably be in the history books," the 23-year-old said.
The final troops completed the massive logistical challenge of shuttering hundreds of bases and combat outposts, and methodically moving more than 50,000 U.S. troops and their equipment out of Iraq over the last year ? while still conducting training, security assistance and counterterrorism battles.
As of Thursday, there were two U.S. bases and less than 4,000 U.S. 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 U.S. troops were slated 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 U.S. departure is a bit earlier than initially planned, and military leaders worry that it is a bit premature for the still maturing Iraqi security forces, who face continuing struggles to develop the logistics, air operations, surveillance and intelligence-sharing capabilities they will need in what has long been a difficult region.
Despite President Barack Obama's earlier contention that all American troops would be home for Christmas, at least 4,000 forces will remain in Kuwait for some months. The troops will be able to help finalize the move out of Iraq, but could also be used as a quick reaction force if needed.
Obama stopped short of calling the U.S. effort in Iraq a victory in an interview taped Thursday with ABC News' Barbara Walters.
"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," Obama said.
The Iraq Body Count website says more than 100,000 Iraqis have been killed since the U.S. invasion. The vast majority were civilians.
The U.S. plans to keep a robust diplomatic presence in Iraq, foster a deep and lasting relationship with the nation and maintain a strong military force in the region.
U.S. officials were unable to reach an agreement with the Iraqis on legal issues and troop immunity that would have allowed a small training and counterterrorism force to remain. U.S. defense officials said they expect there will be no movement on that issue until sometime next year.
Obama met in Washington with Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki last week, vowing to remain committed to Iraq as the two countries struggle to define their new relationship. Ending the war was an early goal of the Obama administration, and Thursday's ceremony will allow the president to fulfill a crucial campaign promise during a politically opportune time. The 2012 presidential race is roiling and Republicans are in a ferocious battle to determine who will face off against Obama in the election.
Associated PressSource: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/386c25518f464186bf7a2ac026580ce7/Article_2011-12-18-ML-Iraq/id-aafc10e79b7c456c99b1582d86230496
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Normally, I?d be all for budget cuts. Especially with all the waste and corruption in?government. Finally Los Angeles? slimy Mayor??Antonio Villaraigosa wants budget cuts! Yippie right? Eh, not so much. ?See?Antonio Villaraigosa is basically a carbon copy of New York City?s Michael Bloomberg. Both are far left progressives who gave Obama?s occupiers as much of a chance as they could before things reached a boiling point. Now?Villaraigosa wants to make cuts to the budget to pay for Obama?s occupiers damages to the city that exceed a million dollars. According to CBSLA, this includes $400,000 to replace City Hall?s lawn that was destroyed by the occutards. Maybe i?m just not as educated as far left progressives, but how in the hell does a City Hall lawn cost $400,000?
