The last Spanish troops have left their base in Diwaniya, southern Iraq, state radio reported today.
"There are no longer any Spanish soldiers in the Spanish base. This base, as such, has ceased to exist," state radio's correspondent in Diwaniya said. "The last and only Spaniard in Diwaniya is this correspondent," he added.
The radio said within a few hours no Spanish soldiers would be left in Iraq. A Defence Ministry spokesman in Madrid said he was unable to confirm the report.
The soldiers were among the last remaining in Iraq from a force of up to 1,400 sent by the previous pro-American government. They had been stationed in a largely Shia Muslim area of south-central Iraq, including the cities of Najaf and Diwaniya.
Spain's month-old Socialist government - elected three days after March 11th train bombings killed 191 people in Madrid - has been withdrawing the troops, fulfilling a campaign promise made before the railway attacks.
Defence Minister Jose Bono said the withdrawal would be completed by May 26th, but officials had said it could be over before then.
The United States had urged Spain to reconsider the pullout but Prime Minister Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero, who has called the war a fiasco, would not be moved.
Yesterday, Spanish troops in the process of withdrawing came under attack from Iraqi fighers. One Iraqi was killed and another seriously wounded, and one Spanish soldier was slightly wounded in the attack.