Eight years and two months, 179 dead ... Britain finally pulls the last of its forces out of Iraq

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Source: Herald Scotland

EIGHT years of UK military engagement in Iraq ended at midnight amid criticism the operation was dragged out due to a lack of any clear plan for the country.

Operation Telic, the name for the UK mission in Iraq since 2003, formally finished as the Royal Navy completed training of its Iraqi counterparts.

A handful of staff will remain behind at the British Embassy in Baghdad, a reduction from the 46,000 personnel once involved in an operation that saw the loss of 179 British servicemen and women.

However, the withdrawal of troops from the country brought with it criticism that the military did not have a clear post-operation strategy for the region.

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