Japan's deployment of 550 ground troops as the centerpiece of its commitment to help rebuild Iraq was completed Saturday with the arrival of the remaining 120 troops from Kuwait.
The move caps the dispatch of more than 1,000 Self-Defense Forces members assigned to Iraq's reconstruction since late December, including air personnel based in Kuwait and maritime crews who have finished their work.
Meanwhile, a truck hired by a private company to carry goods for the GSDF troops apparently came under attack, according to information received by the Defense Agency on Saturday. The vehicle was transporting goods from Kuwait to Samawah.
The final 120-member contingent of the Ground Self-Defense Force left a U.S. camp in Kuwait, crossed the Iraqi border at about 8 a.m. and arrived at the southern Iraqi city of Samawah at around 1:30 p.m.