Early withdrawal
The week's news at a glance.
Madrid
Spain’s new prime minister, Jose Zapatero, said this week that he would begin pulling troops out of Iraq immediately. Zapatero, who was elected in March, just after the deadly Madrid train bombings blamed on al Qaida, pledged during his campaign that he would withdraw the 1,400 Spanish troops after June 30, unless the U.S. handed power in Iraq to the U.N. But he said he was scrapping that date because it had become obvious that the U.N. could not possibly take over by then. Honduras, which has 370 soldiers in Iraq, said it, too, would pull out, but all other coalition members indicated that they would stand firm. Albania, which has a token force of 71 noncombat troops, volunteered to send a few more.
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
-
The Icelandic women’s strike 50 years onIn The Spotlight The nation is ‘still no paradise’ for women, say campaigners
-
Mall World: why are people dreaming about a shopping centre?Under The Radar Thousands of strangers are dreaming about the same thing and no one sure why
-
Why scientists are attempting nuclear fusionThe Explainer Harnessing the reaction that powers the stars could offer a potentially unlimited source of carbon-free energy, and the race is hotting up