{"id":55838,"date":"2018-02-07T00:04:35","date_gmt":"2018-02-07T00:04:35","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/navytimes\/uncategorized\/2018\/02\/07\/us-forces-on-guard-in-iraq-even-as-troop-levels-are-expected-to-decline\/"},"modified":"2026-08-08T09:13:51","modified_gmt":"2026-08-08T09:13:51","slug":"us-forces-on-guard-in-iraq-even-as-troop-levels-are-expected-to-decline","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/navytimes\/flashpoints\/2018\/02\/07\/us-forces-on-guard-in-iraq-even-as-troop-levels-are-expected-to-decline\/","title":{"rendered":"US forces on guard in Iraq, even as troop levels are expected to decline"},"content":{"rendered":"
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US troops continue assisting Iraq forces along Syria border as wider US drawdown begins. (Associated Press)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n

It\u2019s been nearly two months since Iraq declared victory over ISIS<\/a>, but the fight isn\u2019t over<\/a> yet.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In a newly released video, U.S. troops, many of whom are with the Texas National Guard\u2019s 36th Infantry Division, are shown assisting Iraqi forces along the border with Syria, where many Islamic State fighters have fled as the terror group has continued to lose territory it once held in Iraq.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Now, as the U.S. presence in Iraq is expected to decline<\/a>, Iraqi and coalition forces want to ensure those fighters cannot return.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe\u2019ve pursued ISIS to the border and are currently working with the Iraqi security forces to ensure ISIS is not able to come back across the border and penetrate into Iraq,\u201d Army Lt. Col. Colonel Brandon Payne said in the video, which was produced by the Associated Press.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In addition to protecting the Iraq-Syria border, U.S. forces are concerned about the possibility of conflict on the Syrian border with Turkey.<\/p>\n\n\n\t