Blair brings home 1,600 facesavers

In the biggest pullout since the end of the war, 1,600 troops will come home over the next few months, reducing the garrison strength in Basra from 7,100 to 5,500.

The remaining British forces will retreat to barracks at the airport outside the city, leaving day-to-day security in the hands of the Iraqi Army.

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But Army sources warned that the withdrawal will simply free up soldiers for deployment in Afghanistan.

While ministers want to promote the idea of overworked soldiers coming home to spend time with their loved ones, many will now find themselves sent to an equally dangerous region.

Labour spokesmen claim the Iraq drawdown is evidence that the southern part of the country has been largely pacified.

But critics accused Mr Blair of putting his own quest for a political legacy ahead of the lives of troops and Iraqi civilians.

They warned that British forces have bequeathed a region in "mayhem" to Iraqi troops after four years of conflict that has claimed the lives of 132 British servicemen.

The cuts appear certain to provoke a split with President Bush at a time when America is sending 20,000 reinforcements to Baghdad.

Downing Street was forced to deny reports that they want to withdraw all British forces from Iraq by May of next year – apparently after coming under pressure by the Americans.

In a statement to MPs, Mr Blair declared that British troops had successfully completed an operation to clear insurgents from Basra and hand control to the Iraqi Army.

"What all this means is not that Basra is how we want it to be, but it does mean that the next chapter in Basra's history can be written by Iraqis," he said.

But Colonel Tim Collins, who commanded the Royal Irish Regiment during the invasion, condemned the move as premature.

He said: "Shia militias are wreaking mayhem in the South. I don't think we can pretend it is a stable situation. But there is a higher priority here. Tony Blair's popularity has never been so low and the Parliamentary Labour Party is in turmoil. They're looking for cheap wins and if that costs lives it doesn't matter to them."

Original reports stated that around 3,000 troops would be brought home – the result of a Labour spin operation.

But in the end the figure will be little more than half that. Two to three thousand British soldiers will have to remain in Iraq for another two years or more.

The first cut in troop numbers will come with the next rotation of Army units due in April, with fewer units being sent out for the next six month tour of duty.

By the summer British commanders hope to withdraw from several key bases around Basra: the Old State Building and the Shatt al Arab Hotel in the city itself, and the sprawling Shaibah Logistics Base a few miles to the south.

Another 500 troops could be withdrawn in late summer when Britain hands over control of Basra palace.

In the volatile Maysan province to the north there will be little change. Hundreds of British troops will continue to mount long-range desert patrols, trying to secure the Iranian border.

During heated exchanges in the Commons, Mr Blair attempted to give an upbeat assessment of the security situation to justify the troop withdrawal.

He claimed the progress in Basra had been "remarkable" and claimed the battle with extremists in Iraq was part of an "epochal struggle between the forces of progress and the forces of reaction" across the whole Middle East.

He also discussed the moves with President Bush and said that the U.S. administration was happy with them.

Vice President Dick Cheney said: "I look at it and see it as actually an affirmation that there are parts of Iraq where things are going pretty well."

Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice added: "The coalition remains intact."

But Mr Bush's political rivals were quick to press for U.S. troop reductions. Democrat Senator Edward Kennedy said: "No matter how the White House tries to spin it, the British government has decided to split with President Bush and begin to move their troops out of Iraq."

Tory leader David Cameron welcomed the withdrawal but renewed demands for an independent public inquiry into the handling of the war.

Former LibDem leader Charles Kennedy called Iraq a quagmire' and said: "This has been our worst foreign policy misadventure since Suez."

In a sign of the dangers ahead, the MoD announced last night that a Marine from 45 Commando died in Helmand province, Afghanistan, after stepping on an anti-personnel mine.