Obama to honor troops as Iraq combat mission ends

By JULIE PACE Associated Press Writer

WASHINGTON (AP) - President Barack Obama will personally thank some of the U.S. soldiers who fought in Iraq for their service before returning to the White House on Tuesday to formally announce the end of the combat mission in Iraq.

Obama will meet with troops at Fort Bliss, a sprawling Army base in El Paso, Texas. Tens of thousands of soldiers who fought in Iraq deployed from the base. Obama will then return to Washington to address the nation from the Oval Office.

While the U.S. combat mission is ending, about 50,000 U.S. troops will remain in Iraq to back up and help train that country's security forces. Under a joint agreement between the two countries, all U.S. forces must be out of Iraq by the end of 2011.