Fox News is reporting that President Barack Obama has decided to reduce the number of U.S. troops in Iraq to 3,000, and leave them in the country after the December 31st withdrawal deadline to provide additional assistance to the country.
Under the status of forces agreement agreed to by President George W. Bush in 2008 and endorse by Obama, all U.S. troops were to leave country by the end of the year.
The Iraqi government has requested that American forces stay after that date, as violence in that country has escalated in recent months.
U.S. generals had requested nearly 27,000 troops to remain in Iraq to maintain stability — a number brought down to 10,000 and ultimately 3,000, lacking the support of many in the Obama administration, according to Fox News. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton was reportedly the only senior administration official pushing for more troops to remain in the country.
Read the full report here:
