Deal reached for US troops to quit Iraq by 2011

NEGOTIATORS have finalised a deal that will see the complete withdrawal of US troops from Iraq by 2011, ending an eight-year occupation, the top official in the Iraqi team claimed.

Under the 27-point deal, all American combat troops will be withdrawn from Iraqi cities by next June, said negotiator Mohammed al-Haj Hammoud.

The agreement has already been approved by US president George Bush and needs to be endorsed by Iraqi leaders, he added.