Iraq Transitions As U.S. Forces Withdraw After 8-Year Presence

BAGHDAD, IRAQ - DECEMBER 05: Station master Jawad Khathem walks to mount a Shi'ite flag on a pole at Baghdad Central Railway Station in preparation for the festival Ashura on December 5, 2011 in Baghdad, Iraq. Iraq's railway system once bustled with trains that connected to destinations including Turkey and London. The Day of Ashura marks the death of Prophet Muhammad's grandson, the revered Husayn ibn Ali at the Battle of Karbala in 61AH and is remembered on the 10th day of Muharram. During the time of Sunni dictator Saddam Hussein's rule Shi'ite festivals were prohibited. Iraq is transitioning nearly nine years after the 2003 U.S. invasion and subsequent occupation. American forces are now in the midst of the final stage of withdrawal from the war-torn country. According to the Iraq Body Count at least 4,485 U.S. military personnel have died in service in Iraq and more than 100,000 Iraqi civilians have died from war-related violence. (Photo by Mario Tama/Getty Images)