Iraqi government against US withdrawal – analyst

A string of bombings have rocked Iraq, killing more than 50. In Baghdad alone, over 20 bombs have exploded in at least 12 separate incidents.

Iraqi officials claim Al-Qaeda-linked forces are behind the blasts.

The attacks come just a day after the US announced it had withdrawn the last of its combat troops.

However, 50,000 troops remain to advise the Iraqi forces and are at their lowest number since the start of the war in 2003.

But these attacks lead many to question the Iraqi government's ability to deal with an ongoing insurgency.

Sabah Al-Mukhtar from the Arab Lawyers Association in London claims it is not a coincidence.

“Withdrawal of the forces is the withdrawal of some forces, leaving more than 53,000 combat troops, as well as increasing the number of the mercenaries to about 100,000,” he told RT. “So we are back again to around 150,000 US citizens, US-instructed, US-employed people in Iraq as an occupying force, and supporting the government. And that’s why we are seeing the spate of explosions. There are… various theories, but one of the more credible ones is that the government is actually involved itself in order to prevent the Americans form pulling out, or at least the troops they leave – they must be engaged in military and use of force, not just training as it was claimed by the Americans.”