ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - The US-led Global Coalition to Defeat ISIS has pledged more than $75 million to support counterterrorism efforts in Syria and strengthen detention, health and sanitation services and assistance to displaced and detained populations in Iraq and Syria, the US Department of State said.
The commitments were announced during an ad-hoc Coalition meeting of political directors and senior diplomatic officials held in Rome on Thursday and co-hosted by Italy and the United States. The meeting came a day after the US-led Coalition formally concluded its military mission in Iraq under a 2024 security agreement between Baghdad and Washington.
Coalition members congratulated Iraq and Syria on what the State Department described as the success of Operation Inherent Resolve (OIR) in degrading the Islamic State (ISIS), while emphasizing that the end of the mission’s mandate in Iraq would shift the focus toward strengthening national counterterrorism capabilities.
“The ending of OIR’s mandate in Iraq represents true victory of the collective efforts of the Coalition and the resolve of the Iraqi government to continue its responsibility to ensure the group cannot regenerate,” the Department of State said in a statement on Friday.
The Coalition also welcomed what it described as a new partner in Damascus that recognizes the ISIS threat and is determined to cooperate with the international group to diminish it.
“Lasting security in both countries will depend on strengthening inclusive, sovereign state institutions capable of representing and protecting all communities who can equally partake in their country’s future,” the statement added.
The meeting followed the formal conclusion of the US-led Coalition’s military mission in Iraq on Wednesday, ending an operational deployment that began more than 12 years ago after ISIS swept across the Syrian border in 2014 and seized large swathes of Iraqi territory.
The Coalition’s military mission has now ended, although the broader effort against ISIS is set to continue from outside Iraq through cooperation and support for Iraqi security institutions.
US President Donald Trump confirmed Wednesday that “the last American forces are leaving Iraq,” saying on Truth Social that “Operation Inherent Resolve ends in 2026.”
“This Day is a victory for the United States, a victory for Iraq, and a decisive victory over ISIS,” Trump said.
The withdrawal has coincided with unresolved efforts by Baghdad to bring all weapons held by armed factions under state control. Plans to disarm factions alongside the Coalition’s departure were delayed after domestic and international pressure, leading the government and armed groups to negotiate an alternative timeline.
Iraqi Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi on Thursday praised factions that have agreed to place their weapons under state control and urged others to follow suit.
“We commend the stance of the factions that have declared their commitment to addressing the issue of weapons in accordance with the constitution and the timetable set by the government,” Zaidi said at the Sovereignty Day conference in Baghdad.
He added that he expected “the same commitment from the remaining factions, in a manner that serves the interest of our beloved people and strengthens the authority and prestige of the state.”
RELATED: Iraqi PM announces ‘new era’ as US-led coalition completes withdrawal
%5B1%5D.jpg&w=3840&q=75)
