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Iraqi and U.S. military agree to reduce combat units in two military bases in Iraq

The agreement was reached during a meeting held on Thursday in Baghdad between an Iraqi committee headed by JOC's Deputy Commander Lt. Gen. Abdul Amir al-Shammari and a U.S. committee headed by Maj. Gen. John Brennan, commanding general of the U.S.-led coalition forces in Iraq, a JOC statement said.
The two sides agreed to reduce the combat units from the military bases in Ayn al-Asad in the Anbar province in western Iraq, and Erbil in the semi-autonomous region of Kurdistan in northern of the country. The reduction of U.S. units will be completed by the end of this month, and the remaining units will be for support, equipment, and intelligence sharing purposes, it added.

The meeting was part of what was agreed upon during the U.S.-Iraqi Strategic Dialogue in July, when the two sides agreed to withdraw all U.S. combat troops from Iraq by December 31, 2021.
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The two sides also agreed to hold regular sessions to complete the discussion of the remaining steps to secure the transition to a non-combat role for the U.S.-led coalition forces.
The Strategic Dialogue sessions between Iraq and the United States were initiated on June 11, 2020, under the Strategic Framework Agreement signed in 2008 between Baghdad and Washington.
The relation between the two countries strained after Jan. 3, 2020, when a U.S. drone struck a convoy at Baghdad airport, which killed Qassem Soleimani, former commander of the Quds Force of Iran's Islamic Revolution Guards Corps, and Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis, deputy chief of Iraq's paramilitary Hashd Shaabi forces.
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The Iraqi parliament passed a resolution on Jan. 5, 2020, requiring the government to end the presence of foreign forces in Iraq.
The U.S. airstrike also pushed unidentified militias to launch a series of rocket and mortar attacks on Iraqi military bases housing U.S. troops across Iraq, as well as the U.S. embassy in the Green Zone in central Baghdad.
The tension pushed the two sides to launch sessions of strategic dialogue during which the United States pledged to cut its troops in the country.
Source: xinhua
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BENEFIT Sponsors BuildHer...
- April 23, 2025
BENEFIT, the Kingdom’s innovator and leading company in Fintech and electronic financial transactions service, has sponsored the BuildHer CityHack 2025 Hackathon, a two-day event spearheaded by the College of Engineering and Technology at the Royal University for Women (RUW).
Aimed at secondary school students, the event brought together a distinguished group of academic professionals and technology experts to mentor and inspire young participants.
More than 100 high school students from across the Kingdom of Bahrain took part in the hackathon, which featured an intensive programme of training workshops and hands-on sessions. These activities were tailored to enhance participants’ critical thinking, collaborative problem-solving, and team-building capabilities, while also encouraging the development of practical and sustainable solutions to contemporary challenges using modern technological tools.
BENEFIT’s Chief Executive Mr. Abdulwahed AlJanahi, commented: “Our support for this educational hackathon reflects our long-term strategic vision to nurture the talents of emerging national youth and empower the next generation of accomplished female leaders in technology. By fostering creativity and innovation, we aim to contribute meaningfully to Bahrain’s comprehensive development goals and align with the aspirations outlined in the Kingdom’s Vision 2030—an ambition in which BENEFIT plays a central role.”
Professor Riyadh Yousif Hamzah, President of the Royal University for Women, commented: “This initiative reflects our commitment to advancing women in STEM fields. We're cultivating a generation of creative, solution-driven female leaders who will drive national development. Our partnership with BENEFIT exemplifies the powerful synergy between academia and private sector in supporting educational innovation.”
Hanan Abdulla Hasan, Senior Manager, PR & Communication at BENEFIT, said: “We are honoured to collaborate with RUW in supporting this remarkable technology-focused event. It highlights our commitment to social responsibility, and our ongoing efforts to enhance the digital and innovation capabilities of young Bahraini women and foster their ability to harness technological tools in the service of a smarter, more sustainable future.”
For his part, Dr. Humam ElAgha, Acting Dean of the College of Engineering and Technology at the University, said: “BuildHer CityHack 2025 embodies our hands-on approach to education. By tackling real-world problems through creative thinking and sustainable solutions, we're preparing women to thrive in the knowledge economy – a cornerstone of the University's vision.”
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