# Operation Inherent Resolve (2014–2026) The US-led coalition campaign against the [[Islamic State]] in Iraq and Syria, launched in 2014 and formally ended on **September 30, 2026**, when the last American and coalition forces departed **Erbil Air Base** in the Kurdistan region of northern Iraq. Its conclusion closed a continuous US military presence in Iraq that began with the 2003 invasion — see [[Iraq War]] — and handed the remaining security file to the government of Iraq. OIR is the bridge between the two chapters the vault treats separately: the regime-change war of 2003 and the counter-ISIS mission that outlasted it by twelve years. It spanned four presidencies and ended under a fifth-term framing by [[Donald Trump]] that misattributed its own origins. ## The withdrawal, step by step | Date | Development | |---|---| | August 8, 2014 | US airstrikes against the [[Islamic State]] begin in Iraq, after ISIS seizes territory across Iraq and Syria. Operations expand into [[Syria]] the following month. | | October 15, 2014 | CENTCOM formally designates the campaign **Operation Inherent Resolve**, a name chosen to reflect "the unwavering resolve and deep commitment of the U.S. and partner nations" to eliminating ISIL. | | December 2021 | The US announces the end of its combat role in Iraq, retaining roughly 2,500 troops in advise-and-assist roles. | | 2023 | The Iraqi government formally calls for a complete US withdrawal. | | 2024 | [[Joe Biden]] and then–Iraqi prime minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani agree a phased withdrawal plan. A residual advisory contingent is permitted to stay past the deadline after the collapse of the Assad regime in Syria raises concerns about an Islamist resurgence there. | | January 18, 2026 | Iraq announces the full withdrawal of US forces from its federal territory. Forces leave Ain al-Asad Airbase; a presence is retained in the Kurdistan region. | | May 14, 2026 | **Ali al-Zaidi** is sworn in as prime minister of Iraq after parliament endorses most of his cabinet. | | September 30, 2026 | The last roughly **1,500** US and coalition personnel depart **Erbil Air Base**. The Pentagon declares the withdrawal complete and Operation Inherent Resolve concluded. | ## What the Pentagon said Defense Department spokesman [[Sean Parnell]] described an **"orderly departure"** and framed the end of the mission as > [!quote] Sean Parnell, September 30, 2026 > "the success of a 12-year campaign that defeated ISIS as an organised military threat in Iraq and across the region." Parnell said responsibility for Iraq's remaining security challenges **"now rests with the Government of Iraq,"** and that the United States would **"continue to provide targeted training and intelligence support."** CENTCOM commander Adm. Brad Cooper marked the departure separately: > [!quote] Adm. Brad Cooper, CENTCOM > "Job well done to the tens of thousands of American service members, diplomats, and civilian personnel who answered the call in Iraq." ## Trump's announcement and the conflated operations Trump announced the departure on Truth Social the evening of September 30, 2026, calling the mission **"a very expensive excursion into Hell"** and **"a Great Day for America."** He credited the defeat of ISIS to his own first term and contrasted the departure with the 2021 Afghanistan withdrawal. The post also collapsed two distinct operations into one. Trump wrote that the campaign was **"Launched in 2003 under the presidency of George W. Bush, and continued under the Administration of Barack Hussein Obama in 2014,"** and that **"Operation Inherent Resolve ends in 2026."** The 2003 invasion was **Operation Iraqi Freedom**; Operation Inherent Resolve was a separate mission that began in 2014 against ISIS, an organization that did not exist in its later form at the time of the invasion. The error merges a regime-change war with the counter-insurgency campaign that followed it — a conflation that flattens the causal chain running from one to the other, since ISIS emerged from the insurgency and sectarian collapse the invasion produced. > [!warning] Sourcing note > The Truth Social text above is quoted from the primary post as reproduced at trumpstruth.org, not from any commentator's rendering of it. The characterization of the operation-name error is this vault's reading of that primary text. ## Strategic aftermath Reporting on the departure noted that the regional balance it leaves behind is not the one US planners anticipated. When Biden agreed to withdraw, Iran was comparatively isolated — under sanctions, facing domestic unrest, and estranged from neighbors. The [[Iran War 2026]], in its eighth month at the time of the withdrawal, is widely assessed to have strengthened Iran's position in Iraq rather than weakened it, leaving the vacated security space more open to Iranian-aligned actors such as the [[Iraqi PMF]]. ## See Also - [[Iraq War]] — the 2003 invasion and occupation this mission outlasted - [[Mission Accomplished]] — the 2003 declaration of success, twenty-three years early - [[Bush Doctrine]] — the framework the original invasion was launched under - [[Islamic State]] - [[Iran War 2026]] - [[Iraqi PMF]] - [[Iraq]] - [[Forever Wars]] - [[War on Terror Timeline]] - [[Afghanistan War]] - [[Pete Hegseth]] - [[Sean Parnell]] - [[Brett McGurk]] - [[Iraqi History Hub]]