Spain to move Iraq troops over risks from Iran war, defense minister says

Record ID: 2367526

  • Title: Spain to move Iraq troops over risks from Iran war, defense minister says
  • Date: 19th March 2026
  • Summary: MADRID, SPAIN (MARCH 19, 2026) (REUTERS) SPANISH DEFENCE MINISTER MARGARITA ROBLES WALKING TOWARDS JOURNALISTS (SOUNDBITE) (Spanish) SPANISH DEFENCE MINISTER MARGARITA ROBLES SAYING: “Our military in Iraq are no longer in Iraq, they have been relocated to Turkey. I won’t say where for security reasons. The 100 military who departed aren’t in Iraq anymore, they are relo
  • Embargoed:
  • Keywords: Iran Iraq Spain army soldiers
  • Location: MADRID, SPAIN
  • City: MADRID, SPAIN
  • Country: Spain
  • Topics: Conflicts/War/Peace,Europe
  • Reuters ID: LVA001561819032026RP1
  • Aspect Ratio: 16:9
  • Story Text: Spain has evacuated and relocated part of the troops deployed in Iraq due to the conflict in Iran and the wider Gulf region, Defence Minister Margarita Robles said on Wednesday (March 19). 
        “Our military in Iraq are no longer in Iraq, they have been relocated to Turkey. I won’t say where for security reasons. The 100 military who departed aren’t in Iraq anymore," Robles told reporters. 
        Around 300 Spanish troops were deployed in Iraq, both as part of an international coalition against the Islamic State formed in 2015 under Operation Inherent Resolve and a separate NATO mission advising Iraqi government forces since 2018.  
        The ministry had already said on Sunday that a special forces unit comprising 71 soldiers had been temporarily relocated from their base given the impossibility of carrying out tasks such as training Iraqi counter-terrorism forces.
        The U.S.-Israeli war on Iran, now in its third week, has quickly become a regional conflict that shows no signs of de-escalation. Spain has criticized the offensive and banned U.S. aircraft from using jointly operated bases in southern Spain.
        Other NATO allies such as Germany or Norway are also sharply drawing down their presence in the region due to the security risks. Berlin has pulled Bundeswehr troops from Lebanon and northern Iraq's Erbil, while Oslo said it was relocating some of the around 60 soldiers it has in the Middle East.
    (Production: Michael Gore, Nina Lopez)
  • Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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