A number of countries are withdrawing troops from Iraq amid the Covid-19 crisis, in many cases because of Iraq’s decision to suspend all military training until the second half of May. Among those to confirm redeployments is Australia, which on 23 March said the Australian Defence Force was temporarily relocating non-essential personnel from Iraq and Afghanistan to Al-Mindad Air Base in Dubai, its main logistics base in the region. “This temporary measure is to preserve the safety of our people and partners, and to limit the spread of Covid-19 in operational areas,” defence minister Linda Reynolds said.
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