Britain Urges Iraq to Stick with Anti-IS Coalition Troops

London, Jan 5 (AFP) London has urged Baghdad to allow international coalition soldiers to stay in Iraq, where the parliament on Sunday pressed the government to oust foreign troops.

Iraq's parliament urged the country's government to oust thousands of chiefly US soldiers from the country, stepping up pressure over the US killing of a top Iranian general near Baghdad airport.

British troops are part of an international coalition of forces stationed in Iraq -- invited by the government in Baghdad in 2014 -- to help fight against the Islamic State (IS) jihadist group.

A British government spokesman said: "The coalition is in Iraq to help protect Iraqis and others from the threat from Daesh (IS), at the request of the Iraqi government.

"We urge the Iraqi government to ensure the coalition is able to continue our vital work countering this shared threat." Tensions have escalated in the Middle East after a US precision drone strike on Friday killed Iran's Major General Qasem Soleimani and top Iraqi military figure Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis.

"The parliament has voted to commit the Iraqi government to cancel its request to the international coalition for help to fight IS," speaker Mohammed Halbusi announced. The cabinet would have to approve any such decision.

Some 5,200 US soldiers are stationed across Iraqi bases to support local troops preventing an IS resurgence. (AFP)

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