Pentagon chief pledges continued U.S. troop presence in Iraq

FILE PHOTO: U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin speaks during a news briefing after participating a virtual Ukraine Defense Contact Group meeting at the Pentagon in Arlington, Virginia, U.S., November 16, 2022. REUTERS/Tom Brenner/File Photo

BAGHDAD/ERBIL, Iraq (Reuters) -U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin, making an unannounced trip to Iraq on Tuesday nearly 20 years after the U.S.-led invasion that toppled Saddam Hussein, said Washington was committed to keeping its military presence in the country

The 2003 invasion led to the deaths of tens of thousands of Iraqi civilians and created instability that eventually paved the way for the rise of Islamic State militants after the U.S. withdrew its forces in 2011.