France confirms it is pulling out troops from Iraq due to coronavirus

France is pulling out its troops from Iraq due to the coronavirus outbreak which has affected more than 25,000 people in the country and claimed over 1,000 lives.

The withdrawal of the French military contingent from Iraq was announced on Wednesday by the Iraqi military command, Sputnik reported citing the local media. “In cooperation with the Iraqi government, the coalition decided to adjust its presence in Iraq and temporarily suspend its training of the Iraqi security forces, especially taking into account the health care crisis,” the Le Figaro newspaper quoted the General Staff’s communique.

The troop withdrawal will start from March 26 onwards. France has confirmed 25,233 coronavirus infection cases, among which 1,331 people have died, Director General of Health Jerome Salomon announced on Wednesday. According to the WHO’s daily situation report, more than 4,14,000 cases have been confirmed worldwide, over 18,000 people have died. Meanwhile, Europe has registered a total of 2,20,516 confirmed cases with more than 11, 986 deaths. —