Iraq Kurds fear US-led coalition's exit

With the date of the US-led coalition's withdrawal from Iraq approaching, Kurds in Erbil say they are increasingly anxious, uncertain who will protect them from drones that have repeatedly targeted their autonomous region.

Baghdad and Washington agreed in 2024 to wind down the coalition's mission against the Islamic State group (IS) in Iraq.

Coalition forces are now only present at Erbil airport, with their final withdrawal scheduled for September 30, after having completed in the past year their exit from other bases.

Sherzad Farhadi, a 47-year-old electronics shopkeeper in Erbil's old bazaar, said "undoubtedly, their withdrawal will be very dangerous".

"We cannot intercept the missiles coming from Iran ourselves," he added.

Over the years, coalition forces have downed many explosive-laden drones and missiles over the Kurdistan region, some targeting their own bases, others hitting other areas including oil fields.

Kurdish authorities have mostly blamed these attacks on Tehran-backed armed groups.

During the Middle East conflict, Iran and its allied factions intensified their attacks, targeting mostly US-led troops and exiled Iranian Kurdish militant groups, with some drones hitting buildings in the heart of the city of Erbil.

Rosary vendor Hashem Saeed, 62, said "if America weren't here, how would they be intercepted?" referring to the drones.

"They certainly can't be shot down with our weapons," he added.

Coalition troops deployed to Iraq and Syria in 2014 to fight IS, which had seized large swathes of both countries and committed massacres and other atrocities.

The group was defeated in Iraq in 2017 and in Syria in 2019, but coalition forces stayed on to battle the group's remnants.

The coalition exited Syria earlier this year.

Farhadi also warned that IS could reemerge and "destabilise" the entire region once more.

The presence of the coalition, especially after IS's defeat, has been a persistent point of contention between Iraqi authorities and Tehran-backed armed factions in the country.

Erbil electronics vendor Zeravan Saeed, 41, believes the coalition's pullout removes the excuse of the factions to attack Kurdistan.

"This is the positive outcome," he said.

In Baghdad, the vibe is different.

On the busy street of Karada, Abdullah al-Kinani said "sovereignty will not be fully realised until all foreign forces have left Iraqi soil."

Iraqi Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi declared that October 1, the day following the coalition's departure, should be celebrated as Sovereignty Day.

strs/rh/ris