News Maharishi in the World Today

How We Present
the News







  
El Salvador to withdraw all troops from Iraq

Reuters    Translate This Article
24 December 2008

SAN SALVADOR (Reuters) - El Salvador, the only Latin American country with troops in Iraq, said on Tuesday it is bringing its soldiers home as a U.N. mandate expires.

El Salvador is one of a dwindling number of countries with troops deployed in the U.S-led war in Iraq, and its involvement has been symbolically important for Washington as the invasion was deeply unpopular in Latin America.

A U.N mandate legalizing the presence of forces from Britain, Australia, El Salvador, Romania, Estonia and NATO expires at year's end, although Iraq's parliament approved a measure on Tuesday allowing them to stay longer.

'Mission accomplished,' Salvadoran President Tony Saca told reporters. He said the 200 soldiers serving in Iraq would leave in January.

El Salvador became the only Latin American country with troops in Iraq after Nicaragua, Honduras and the Dominican Republic pulled their forces out early in the war.

The United States backed right-wing governments in El Salvador with heavy military aid during a civil war against Marxist guerrillas in the 1980s, when Central America was a Cold War battleground.

Polls have shown most Salvadorans opposed their country's participation in the war.

Since 2003, six Salvadoran soldiers have died while serving in Iraq, some in combat and others by accident.

(Reporting by Raul Gutierrez; Editing by Todd Eastham)

Copyright 2008 Reuters. Reprinted with permission from Reuters. Reuters content is the intellectual property of Reuters or its third party content providers. Any copying, republication or redistribution or Reuters content is expressly prohibited without the prior written consent of Reuters. Reuters shall not be liable for any errors or delays in content, or for any actions taken in reliance thereon. Reuters and the Reuters Sphere Logo are registered trademarks of the Reuters group of companies around the world. For additional information about Reuters content and services, please visit Reuters website at www.reuters.com. License # REU-4198-JJM.



Translation software is not perfect; however if you would like to try it, you can translate this page using:

(Google)
(Altavista babelfish)

Send Good News to Global Good News.

Your comments.


world peace more

World News | Genetic Engineering | Education | Business | Health News

Search | Global News | Agriculture and Environmental News | Business News
Culture News | Education News | Government News | Health News
Science and Technology News | World Peace | Maharishi Programmes
Press Conferences | Transcendental Meditation | Celebration Calendars | Gifts
News by Country | News in Pictures | What's New | Modem/High Speed | RSS/XML