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The Iraq war formally ended for British forces on Thursday as America's main battlefield ally handed control of the oil-rich Basra area to U.S. commanders and prepared to ship out most of its remaining 4,000 troops.A U.S. flag was raised over the British base outside the southern city of Basra in a ceremony held after a memorial for the 179 British military personnel who died in more than six years of warfare."Today marks the closing chapter of the combat mission in Iraq," British Prime Minister Gordon Brown said in London after meeting with Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki.
British forces end combat operations in Iraq
The Iraq war formally ended for British forces on Thursday as America's main battlefield ally handed control of the oil-rich Basra area to U.S. commanders and prepared to ship out most of its remaining 4,000 troops.A U.S. flag was raised over the British base outside the southern city of Basra in a ceremony held after a memorial for the 179 British military personnel who died in more than six years of warfare."Today marks the closing chapter of the combat mission in Iraq," British Prime Minister Gordon Brown said in London after meeting with Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki.
