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The situation in Nineveh province will be different after US Forces withdrawal at the end of the month.
Some non-combat troops will remain in Mosul after June 30 while the Iraqi government has agreed on their stay stressing that they would work in a supportive role to Iraqi Forces in five Districts only, Major General Robert Caslen, the senior US officer in northern Iraq, said in a press conference. Coalition forces would continue to launch operations in remote areas and away from cities, but only “with the agreement of Iraqi forces”, Caslen added.
The governor of Nineveh province, Athil Al Nujaifi, proposed that American military vehicles carry special markings after US Forces withdrawal from Iraqi cities.
“There will be words written on the vehicles moving in the streets,” said Caslen, noting that this would take between two and four weeks to finalize.
Iraqi Major General Hassan Karim Khodhair said the June 30 withdrawal was “a historic day”.
“There is a major effort by the different leaderships and all the operating unit. There is clear coordination from people in Mosul that helped the province to make this progress”, he said.
In another context, the US military handed over to Iraqi Forces a presidential palace they were using as a military base in Al Arabi District in Mosul.
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