- End of an era. The United States completed its military exit from Iraq on September 30, 2026, ending a presence that began with the 2003 invasion and lasted 23 years, at a cost of more than 4,500 American lives.
- Security vacuum. Kurdistan absorbed more than 1,000 drone and ballistic-missile attacks since the US-Iran war began in February 2026, and Iran-backed militias including Kataib Hezbollah continue to refuse disarmament.
- Sovereignty calculation. Iraqi Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi championed the deadline, declaring October 1 “a new day in the trajectory of the Iraqi state”—but the Kurdish Regional Government warned the security environment “has not yet reached a level of stability.”
The final US and coalition troops departed Iraqi Kurdistan on September 30, 2026, completing a two-phase military drawdown that the Biden administration negotiated in 2024 and the Trump administration executed. Iraq’s government declared September 30 to October 2 “Days of Sovereignty,” marking the formal end of the US-led coalition against the Islamic State, established in 2014.
The Withdrawal in Numbers
More than 4,500 American service members died in Iraq over two decades of military operations that began in 2003. The US-Iran conflict that started in February 2026 added to the toll: seven of the 18 US personnel killed in that conflict died in Iraq, including an army sergeant who died in July during drone disposal operations, according to The National News. The coalition mission established in 2014 to combat the Islamic State lasted twelve years before its conclusion today.
What Changes on October 1
The formal military mission ends, removing US air support, intelligence networks, and air defence infrastructure from Iraqi and Kurdish territory. Militia disarmament, a long-standing demand from Gulf states and Western governments, has been deferred until June 2027. Kataib Hezbollah and Harakat Hezbollah al-Nujaba have explicitly refused to comply. Washington and Baghdad expect security cooperation to continue under a bilateral economic and diplomatic framework, replacing the coalition structure with a different legal basis for any future coordination.
Security Risks That Remain
Atheel al-Nujaifi, a Sunni politician and former governor of Nineveh, was direct: “ISIS is not dead, and its cells are not as dormant.” The Islamic State retains sleeper cells across former strongholds despite its territorial defeat. Kurdistan’s exposure grew sharply after February 2026, when the active US-Iran conflict extended into Iraqi airspace and produced more than 1,000 drone and missile strikes in the region. Kurdish Regional Government spokesperson Noreldin Waisy said the political and security situation “has not yet reached a level of stability.”
Regional Stakes
Gulf states—the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Kuwait, Bahrain, and Jordan—have held Baghdad responsible for attacks by Iran-aligned militias operating from Iraqi territory. Iraq now faces competing pressures: Iranian-backed factions within its political system frame the withdrawal as a sovereign achievement, while Erbil, Riyadh, and Western partners worry about the security architecture that disappears with the coalition’s end. Baghdad is trying to rebuild strained Gulf relationships as it enters a post-coalition era, with militia disarmament pledged on paper but not yet enforced in the field.