US House of Representatives Votes to Withdraw Troops from Iraq

The US House of Representatives has voted in favour of withdrawing combat troops from Iraq by April 2008.

By a vote of 223-201, the Democratic-controlled House approved the legislation in the hope it will pressure the Senate to attach a similar mandatory troop withdrawal timetable to a military policy bill it is debating.

The vote calls on the US Government to commence the withdrawal within four months, leading to a complete pull-out over the following 6 months.

The House of Representatives has made the vote despite President George W Bush previously threatening to veto any insistence on a timetable for withdrawal.

The House of Representatives, which has a Democrat majority, is expected to look to influence a Senate vote to approve their timetable and pressure Bush even more.

Under US laws, both Houses must vote in favour of separate legislature and reconcile the two versions for it to be passed on to the President.

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, a Democrat, said: "It is time for the President to listen to the American people and do what is necessary to protect this nation.

"That means admitting his Iraq policy has failed, working with the Democrats and Republicans in Congress on crafting a new way forward in Iraq and refocusing our collective efforts on defeating al-Qaeda."

Bush presented an interim report on Iraq yesterday, in which he said there had only been "limited" military and political success following the troop reinforcement to the region earlier this year.

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, also a Democrat, said: "The report makes clear that not even the White House can conclude there has been significant progress. We have already waited too long."

However, Bush has repeatedly rejected pressure to force a withdrawal, saying that if the US did so, it would be a disaster for the country and the entire Middle East region. Instead he insists that the pull-out must come when conditions are right, and not "because pollsters say it'll be good politics".

It seems now Democrats will look for support from Republicans and push the legislation through in a final Senate vote scheduled for next week.

Under the bill, an unspecified number of US soldiers would stay in Iraq to train Iraqi soldiers, conduct counter-terrorism operations and protect US diplomats.