Dutch soldiers start pullout from Afghanistan: Radio Netherlands
IRNA - Islamic Republic News Agency
Berlin, Aug 1, IRNA -- The Netherlands became the first NATO member state on Sunday to start its gradual withdrawal of its troops out of Afghanistan, according to Radio Netherlands.
Dutch soldiers handed over their Kamp Holland military base in the south Afghan Uruzgan province where they had been in charge of the region, to a joint force of US and Australian troops.
A total of 24 Dutch soldiers have been killed during the four-year NATO-led military operation and an additional 140 wounded, according to the Dutch foreign ministry in The Hague.
Nearly 2,000 Dutch troops served in Afghanistan amid the worsening security situation in Afghanistan.
The decision to pullout came in the aftermath of a disputed NATO request for the Dutch to prolong their military mission for 12 months past the initially agreed date of August 2010.
That caused a political crisis, leading toe collapse of the Dutch coalition government in February and an early withdrawal.
Many European governments, among them Germany, are under intense public pressure to retreat from Afghanistan in the wake of a mounting military death toll in recent months.
OT**1416
End News / IRNA / News Code 1256773
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