Turkey to withdraw troops from northern Iraq

In its statement late Saturday, the foreign ministry said there had been a “lack of communication” with Baghdad on the matter and that Ankara “would continue to coordinate with the Iraqi government over its military contribution to the country in the fight against Daesh”.

During the telephone conversation, US President stressed the need for Turkey to “respect the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Iraq”, according to a report released by the White House.

A woman walks past a building which was damaged during the security operations and clashes between Turkish security forces and Kurdish militants, in the southeastern town of Silvan in Diyarbakir province, Turkey, December 7, 2015.

Turkish troops are stationed at a flashpoint military base near Mosul in northern Iraq, sparking a row this month between Baghdad and Ankara.

“The Council of Ministers reiterates its welcome with Turkish announcement of withdrawal from Iraqi territories, and hoped a complete withdrawal”, the government said in a statement issued after a cabinet meeting headed by Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi.

A convoy of almost 10 vehicles left the Bashiqa Camp on Monday morning and traveled to another region in northern Iraq, Turkey’s Anatolia news agency said. The Turkish armed forces said that soldiers returned fire, and four had been lightly wounded in the incident.

As Obama and Erdoğan spoke on the phone, Iraq pushed the UN Security Council to condemn the “Turkish occupation” of Iraq.

Turkey’s UN Ambassador Halit Çevik criticized Baghdad for undermining the global fight against ISIL and said the troops were sent only to provide additional support in the face of increasing threat by the extremist group.

“We said it before, we will say it again, and we will keep repeating until we put an end to all the baseless allegations: Turkey has never had and will never have any interest in violating Iraq’s sovereignty”, Cevik said.