Japanese troop exit from Iraq came with media gag order

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KUWAIT CITY (Kyodo) The first group of Ground Self-Defense Force troops to exit the Iraq city of Samawah, left Kuwait for Japan on Wednesday morning amid a media blackout over the withdrawal.

A chartered private aircraft carrying the roughly 200 GSDF troops left an air base in Kuwait in the morning.

The rest of the troops are expected to return home over the next week.

Approximately 600 GSDF troops moved from Samawah to Kuwait in six groups between July 7 and Monday and are undergoing health checks at a U.S. camp in Kuwait. The media were allowed to cover the arrival of the final group of GSDF troops, who were welcomed by defense chief Fukushiro Nukaga during his visit to Kuwait. snip

This is the second time the agency has restricted media coverage of the GSDF's withdrawal from Iraq. On July 7, Director General Fukushiro Nukaga abruptly called off an agreement between the agency and its press club about covering the troops' arrival in Kuwait from Samawah.