Seven years ago, the U.S. presence in Iraq was known as Operation Iraqi Freedom. Now, beginning on Sept. 1, it will be known as Operation New Dawn. “By August 31, 2010 our combat mission in Iraq will end,” President Barack Obama said in a speech on Feb. 27, 2009, as American troops began withdrawing from Iraq. This does not mean, however, that American troops have seen the last of combat; only that their mission has taken a new direction.
According to CNN, on Aug. 24, there were fewer than 50,000 troops in Iraq, the lowest since 2003. The troops remaining will take on the tasks of advising, assisting, training, and equipping the Iraqi forces.

Despite the recent string of bombings and threats of attacks in Iraq, American troops will not sway from their latest objective of preparing local forces; BBC has reported that the troops will be armed, but their weapons will be put to use only for purposes of self-defense or at the request of the Iraqi government.

There is some hesitation about the complete withdrawal of the troops, due to the uncertainty of the political situation in Iraq. Regardless of the March parliamentary elections, Iraqi government remains unstable. Iraqi commander, Lt. Gen. Babaker Zebari is among those who are hesitant.

“The problem will start after 2011 . the politicians must find other ways to fill the void after 2011,” said Zebari, according to BBC. “If I were asked about the withdrawal, I would say to politicians, ‘the U.S. Army must stay until the Iraqi army is fully ready in 2020.'”

Due to the unstable political situation, many seem to believe that a civil war in Iraq is inevitable. These beliefs have led to the concern with how Iraq could deal with such turmoil.
“Right now I am concerned that by December 2011 … the Iraqi political process will not be stable or mature enough to handle a complete withdrawal of U.S. troops,” said Ken Pollack, a former CIA analyst and Clinton administration official, voicing his unease to BBC.

Despite concerns and speculation, Operation New Dawn aims to have the residual troops out of Iraq by Dec. 31, 2011. The next 15 months will pass slowly for the families of those who remain in Iraq, but their homecoming will be marked in the pages of history.