WASHINGTON — An official letter from the Defense Department informing Iraq that the United States was “repositioning forces” for “movement out of Iraq” produced headlines around the world that an American withdrawal had begun. But the letter, drafted by the United States military command in Baghdad, was sent out by mistake. The furor it caused prompted Defense Secretary Mark T. Esper and the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Gen. Mark A. Milley, to call an urgent news conference to deny the reports. “It was an honest mistake,” General Milley told reporters at the Pentagon. But the vote was not the final word on the subject and the Iraqi government had not formally notified the United States to leave.

Source: New York Times January 06, 2020 23:46 UTC