About 30 soldiers stationed in Baghdad and Taji will be moved to Jordan and Kuwait, a Defence Ministry spokesman told AFP, adding that the withdrawal will "begin shortly". Germany has deployed about 415 soldiers from its Bundeswehr (army) as part of the anti-IS coalition, with about 120 of its troops stationed in Iraq. Germany's move came after the Iraqi parliament passed a resolution asking the government to end its agreement with the US-led coalition. Foreign Minister Heiko Maas said late on Monday the basis for the Germany military presence in Iraq is "that we have an invitation from the Iraqi government and parliament." "We call on the Iraqi authorities to continue to provide the coalition with the necessary support," they said.

Source: The Local January 07, 2020 08:15 UTC