president obama announcing that america has officially ended its combat mission in iraq, giving the lead to iraqi forces. and beginning a new chapter. from this desk, 7 1/2 years ago, president bush announced the beginning of military operations in iraq. the americans who are served in iraq completed every mission they were given. they defeated a regime that had terrorized its people. together with iraqis and coalition partners that made huge sacrifices of their own, our troops fought block by block to help iraq seize the chance for a better future. so, tonight, i am announcing that the american combat mission in iraq has ended. and the iraqi people now have lead responsibility for the security of their country. violence will not end with our combat mission. extremists will continue to set off bombs, attack iraqi civilians and try to spark sectarian strife. but ultimately, these terrorists will fail to achieve their goals. through this remarkable chapter in the history of t