Pullout begins for Diggers in Iraq
Pullout begins for Diggers in Iraq
Patrick Walters; 2/6/08
Australia has lowered the flag on its three-year 500-strong troop commitment to southern Iraq, honouring the Rudd Government’s election pledge to withdraw combat forces from the country. The Overwatch Battle Group, together with the Australian army’s training team in Iraq, ceased operations yesterday at their base at Talil in Dhi Qar province, and will return home in the next few weeks. Defence Minister Joel Fitzgibbon told The Australian last night that the completion of the Overwatch and training missions marked the end of the army’s combat role in Iraq. About 200 Australian personnel will remain in Iraq serving with the ADF’s taskforce headquartersin Baghdad and the security detachment guarding the Australian embassy.
See: http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/story/0,25197,23794683-2702,00.html
Time to reflect as Australia strikes camp in Iraq
Editorial; 2/6/08
Australia’s last combat troops in Iraq will this week begin furling their flags, quitting their camp in the south of that ravaged country and coming home. This will not mean the end of Australia’s presence - several hundred soldiers, sailors and aircrew will stay in various roles in and around Iraq - but the withdrawal of the combat contingent is symbolically important. It provides ample reason, five years on, for a hard-headed review of what has been achieved, and lost, as a result of the most controversial and divisive overseas involvement embarked on by an Australian government since Vietnam.
See: http://www.smh.com.au/editorial/index.html