# U.S. exit from Erbil bases would end 23-year military presence in Iraq on September 30

*Wednesday, September 23, 2026 at 4:07 AM UTC — Hamer Intelligence Services Desk*

**Published**: 2026-09-23T04:07:26.818Z (2h ago)
**Category**: geopolitics | **Region**: Middle East
**Importance**: 9/10
**Sources**: OSINT
**Permalink**: https://hamerintel.com/data/articles/18581.md
**Source**: https://hamerintel.com/summaries

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**Deck**: On September 30, remaining U.S. forces are expected to leave their last bases in Erbil, Iraqi Kurdistan, which would end a 23-year American military presence in Iraq.

One week from now, the United States is expected to close its final bases in Iraq and bring a 23‑year military presence to an end.

According to public reporting, remaining U.S. forces are due to withdraw from their last positions in and around Erbil, in Iraqi Kurdistan, on September 30. If carried out as described, the pullout from these bases would mark the departure of the last American troops stationed in the country.

Erbil has been the final hub for U.S. forces in Iraq. The city and its surroundings hosted the last bases still in operation as Washington wound down its footprint elsewhere. A full exit from these positions would remove that remaining platform.

For the Kurdistan Region’s authorities, the change would reshape how they think about their own security and their relationships with Baghdad and neighbouring states. For the federal government in Baghdad, it would mean an Iraq without U.S. troops on its soil for the first time in more than two decades, with all the political and security implications that follow.

The move also fits into a broader effort by Washington to adjust where and how it stations forces abroad. But the immediate impact will be felt most clearly in Iraq itself, where American bases have been a constant presence through multiple phases of conflict and uneasy calm.

Signals to watch in the coming days include any formal confirmation of the withdrawal timeline from U.S. and Iraqi officials, details on how future military or security cooperation will be organised without troops on Iraqi soil, and reactions from political factions that have long opposed the U.S. presence.