NPR: Britain to Withdraw More Troops from Iraq

Britain to Withdraw More Troops from Iraq

British Prime Minister Gordon Brown announced during a surprise trip to Iraq that 1,000 additional British soldiers will be pulled out of southern Iraq by Christmas. However, opponents are criticizing his statement as spin.

USA Today reports that Brown said Britain would "fully turn control of Basra province over to Iraqi army and security forces in the next two months."

The reductions are a continuation of a plan started by former Prime Minister Tony Blair. Brown's office refused to comment on reports such as one in The Guardian that said even more troops would be withdrawn by spring, perhaps another 1,500 or more. Britain would have 4,500 troops in Iraq after the reductions announced Tuesday.

But The Telegraph reports that the announcement seems to have backfired on Brown. It emerged that half of the troop withdrawal had already been announced and some of the soldiers were already back in England. Critics were angry that the announcement wasn't made in parliament and accused Brown of treating the military like a "political football."

9:47 AM ET | 10- 3-2007 | permalink

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