By DPA
London : British troops have begun their long-awaited pullout of Iraq’s Basra province, as 550 soldiers stationed at the city’s palace moved to a base near the airport, the Defence Ministry said in London.
About 5,000 British troops are stationed at the airport.
The withdrawal from Basra’s centre, which began Sunday, comes as part of a planned handover of the province to the Iraqi military, a British military spokesman said.
The BBC reported that a spokesman for Prime Minister Gordon Brown would not, however, confirm that the move was a precursor to reducing the number of British troops on the ground in Iraq. He said Brown was aware of the move, but said it was a military matter.
The Sunday Times reported earlier that Britain was preparing to pull out its 5,500 troops from Iraq soon, handing full control over the southern province of Basra to the Iraqi army.
It quoted London government sources as saying Brown was aiming at being able to tell parliament when it resumes meeting Oct 8 that control had been passed on.
The paper added that US commanders in Iraq had already accepted that British forces, who have been gradually handing back the province to Iraqi control, were on their way out of the country.
The military spokesman said the troops would stay at the airport base and remain in charge of security operations, until Iraqi troops were ready to take control of the area.