An eleventh-hour drawdown of U.S. diplomatic personnel in Iraq is leaving a skeleton crew of full-time American aid officials, in addition to locally hired staff, to monitor nearly $1 billion worth of foreign aid programs, current and former officials told Foreign Policy.
Earlier this month, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo moved forward with plans to withdraw dozens of diplomats at the U.S. Embassy in Baghdad, officials and congressional aides said, a preemptive safety measure amid potential security threats tied to the one-year anniversary of the U.S. killing of a top Iranian military commander last January.
