UK troops to stay in Iraq after handover to Baghdad

Suspected insurgents in Baquba. Officials say the situation in Iraq remains too dangerous for a pullout. Picture / Reuters

A force of around 4000 British troops will stay behind in Iraq for an indefinite period even after all provinces controlled by the UK are handed over to the Baghdad government in nine months time, senior defence sources said yesterday.

The soldiers will be positioned at a base in Basra ready to act to " protect the investment" made by US and British forces in the country, it was disclosed.

A senior British commander said that it was "feasible" that the last British controlled region can be handed over to the Iraqi authorities by the middle of next year.

The province of Dhikar, run by the Italians is also due to come under Iraqi suzerinity in the near future.

The Independent has learned that the Rome government plans is to pull out the whole force of 1500 within the next month as Italy takes the lead role in providing more than 3000 for international Lebanon force.

A senior Italian diplomat said: "The announcement about Dhikar is imminent. We are not going to have any troops on the ground in Iraq. We are undertaking a very difficult mission in Lebanon, and we also have more than 2000 troops in Afghanistan at the Iranian border."

The size of the British forces to be left behind, more than half of just over 7000 deployed in Iraq at present, will raise criticism that no exit strategy is in sight.

The revelation about the long term deployment in Iraq came as the same officials warned that Britain was in for the 'long haul' in Afghanistan.

But the message from senior officials yesterday was that the situation in Iraq remains far too dangerous for a full pullout in the foreseeable future.

They insisted that the remaining British forces will not be sent to US controlled central Iraq to help deal with the fierce Sunni insurgency and the spiralling sectarian conflict.

However, a senior military commander said: "We anticipate there is not going to be a political appetite to say 'job done' while there is still unfinished business in the centre of the country."

"We started this as a coalition and we need to protect our investment. The wheels could start to come off in places like Basra if people are left prematurely without support."

The province of Muthanna has been officially handed back to the Iraqi government, and British troops are pulling out of their bases in Maysan.

However, an example of how hazardous the situation remains on the ground came when British soldiers came under attack in the town of Al -Amaraon on Tuesday.

At least two Iraqis were reported killed in the ensuing firefight.

Basra, Iraq's second city, has been the scene of confrontations between British troops and the local police who have been heavily infiltrated by Shia militias, the Badr Brigade and the Mahdi Army led by the radical Shia cleric Moqtada al-Sadr.

A senior defence source said " There are rogue elements linked to people committing illicit killings, some of them alarmingly close to the government structure."

There was also continuing concern about Iranian influence.

"The worry we have is the appearance of technology - improvised explosive devices - which appear to be pretty well identical to what we have seen Hizbullah use. We all know that Hizbullah has a very close relationship with some parts of the Iranian government."

- INDEPENDENT