Unpopular decision
Washington: Six years into the war in Iraq a weary American public finally has an end to the US role in sight, but that end will take a couple more years and require more sacrifices by US soldiers. Beginning with pre-dawn bombing March 20, 2003, over Baghdad, the war was launched with the stated goal of ousting Saddam Hussein's regime and wiping out his weapons of mass destruction - which proved nonexistent.
The mission evolved into stabilising Iraq under a democratic government. President Barack Obama has initiated sharp reductions in the US military presence, a move greatly aided by the progress made in the last two years under George W Bush, whose legacy is largely shaped by his unpopular decision to invade.
Obama says Iraq pullout by Aug 2010: Officials
Text: IANS
Images: Copyright AP. Unauthorised reproduction is prohibited.
Image: A US soldier of 101st Airborne Division patrol in the outskirts of Bagram in north of Kabul, Afghanistan on March 8, 2009.
