US to open new military base in Iraq’s Anbar

The province borders Syria, where the US Air Force is still conducting airstrikes without the authorization of Damascus and that has led to civilian casualties on multiple occasions. The new base will work jointly with two other bases in the province — Ain al-Assad and Habbaniya.

The news comes amid demands by various political figures in Iraq for the US to pull out from the country.

A number of prominent political figures and members of the Iraqi parliament have spoken out against the US’ military presence in the country, with a senior adviser to Iraqi cleric Sayyid Muqtada al-Sadr slamming it as an "occupation of the country."

In March 2018, the Iraqi parliament asked the government to come up with a deadline for the withdrawal US troops, while Diyaa Assadi, a senior adviser to Iraqi cleric Muqtada al-Sadr, whose coalition won in the recent parliamentary elections, has said that the US is seen "as an occupying country."

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