Britain announced Wednesday it will withdraw all but a handful of its 4,000 soldiers from Iraq next year, ending a mission that was unj)opular at home and failed to curb the rise of Iranian-backed Shia militias inthesouth.

The decision comes as the United States is weighing a drawdown in its nearly 1 50,000-strong force. President-elect Barack Obama has called for withdrawing all

combat troops from Iraq by the spring of 2010, shifting responsibility to the Iraqis for the defence of the country against Sunni and Shia extremists.

The British announcement, which was expected, signals a conclusion to the role of the second biggest troop contributor to the multinational coalition after the United States. More than 45,000 British troops took part in the March 2003 invasion that overthrew Saddam Hussein.