U.S. military officials say troops to be reduced in Iraq

BAGHDAD / IraqiNews.com: The U.S. military will reduce the number of troops in Iraq this month as violence has dropped and Iraqi security forces have shown vast improvements, senior military officials said. “The military said it is sending home two brigades and not replacing one of them this month, dropping the number of brigades in Iraq from 15 to 14. A brigade has about 3,000 troops,” CNN reported. There are currently about 152,000 U.S. troops in Iraq . The 2nd Brigade of the 101st Airborne Division was scheduled to leave Iraq in February, but a late November departure will cut short by two months its 15-month tour. The second unit, the 3rd Brigade of the 101st, is scheduled to leave this month and will not be replaced, according to Pentagon officials. Army officials said several other units will be returning early because of positive security situations on the ground in Iraq . However, plans are to eventually replace those units, they said. Early departures and not replacing forces could be the start of a trend that could allow President-elect Barack Obama to fulfill his campaign pledge to reduce the number of combat brigades in Iraq by roughly one a month in his first 16 months in office. Obama, 47, a first-time senator from Illinois , will be sworn in as the 44th president on January 20, 2009. He will enter the White House as the first Democratic president in eight years, replacing Republican George W. Bush. SH (S) 1