Secretary of State Mike Pompeo defended the U.S. military's presence in Iraq — as the Middle Eastern nation's parliament debated demanding its withdrawal following the killing of Qassem Soleimani
Secretary of State Mike Pompeo on Sunday defended the U.S. military's presence in Iraq shortly before the Middle Eastern nation's parliament voted to demand that foreign forces there withdraw following the death of an Iranian general in an American airstrike.
"We are confident that the Iraqi people want the United States to continue to be there to fight the counterterror campaign, and we'll continue to do all the things we need to do to keep America safe," Pompeo said. Soon after Pompeo's appearance on Fox, the Iraqi parliament formally voted to expel American service members from the country, according to— approving a resolution aimed at forcing the U.S. to withdraw roughly 5,000 soldiers stationed across Iraq.
The vote by the Iraqi Parliament was one of several consequential developments on Sunday related to American foreign policy in the region and the rapidly deteriorating U.S.-Iran relationship.of an additional task force of special operations troops to the Middle East after a brigade of 4,000 paratroopers from the 82nd Airborne Division had already been directed to Kuwait in the aftermath of Soleimani's death.
Protesters attend a rally condemning the killing of Iranian Revolutionary Guard Gen. Qassem Soleimani on Sunday in Karachi, Pakistan. | Ikram Suri/AP Photo
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