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First U.S. Troops Leave Iraq In Surge Drawdown
13th MEU on exercise
Agencies:
The first US military unit scheduled to withdraw from Iraq under President George W. Bush’s plan to cut troop levels has left the war zone.
the president approved a plan from his top commander in Iraq to gradually reduce the US force by 20,000 to 30,000 by mid-2008.
Bush said improved security made the cuts possible.
Captain Pamela Marshall, a military spokeswoman in Washington, said the 13th Marine Expeditionary Unit, a group of 2,200 Marines who were stationed in western Anbar province, had boarded a naval vessel and begun the trip home.
A brigade combat team, which normally includes about 4,000 troops, is expected to leave Iraq in mid-December followed by four other brigade combat teams and two Marine battalions.
The US force now totals about 165,000 in Iraq.