God bless all the troops and their families. The time they served and the life that was lost was a great sacrafice for the Iraqi people. And for the free world!
Still, 4,000 U.S. troops remain in Iraq. That's down from about 170,000 at the height of the war.
Troops are now leaving each day. At Thursday's ceremony, Gen. Lloyd Austin, the top U.S. commander in Iraq, said the withdrawal will be complete in the coming days.
"Those lives have not been lost in vain. They gave life to an independent, free and sovereign Iraq. And because of the sacrifices made, these years of war have now yielded to a new era of opportunity." - U.S. Defense Secretary Leon Pannetta, on U.S. and Iraqi casualties
