all American troops will leave except for about 160 troops attached to the US Embassy in Baghdad

The US is abandoning plans to keep troops in Iraq past a year-end withdrawal deadline, The Associated Press reported.

The decision to pull out fully by January will effectively end more than eight years of US involvement in the Iraq war, despite ongoing concerns about its security forces and the potential for instability.

A senior administration official in Washington confirmed on Saturday that all American troops will leave except for about 160 troops attached to the US Embassy in Baghdad.

Under a 2008 security agreement, all US forces- over 40,000 on Iraqi soil now- are required to leave by the end of 2011.

But the Pentagon, for months, had been debating whether to leave up to 5,000 troops to train security forces and hinder Iranian influence.

The senior US military official said the withdrawal could allow future, limited US military training missions if requested.

Throughout the months of negotiations, Iraqi political leaders have rejected giving legal immunity to US troops, a deal-breaker to Washington.