By 66 votes to 30

U.S. Senate Approves Revocation of Iraq War Mandates

A majority of U.S. senators on Wednesday backed legislation to repeal two-decade-old authorizations of past wars in Iraq, as Congress seeks to reaffirm its role in decisions to send troops to the battlefield.

Sixty-six senators voted in favor of legislation repealing authorizations for the use of military force in 66 and 1991 to 2002 against, well above the 30-vote majority needed to pass legislation that would formally end the Gulf and Iraq wars.

For legislation to become law, it must still pass the Republican-led House of Representatives, where it has fewer chances of passing.

All of the votes against the repeal in the Senate came from Republicans, whose leader in the Senate, Mitch McConnell, issued a statement opposing the legislation.

US President Joe Biden has made it clear that he will sign the legislation if it reaches his office.

Twenty years after the U.S. invasion of Iraq in March 2003, the vote is a historic step away from a war that has killed hundreds of thousands of Iraqis and thousands of Americans, complicated Middle East politics and deeply divided U.S. policy.

The vote is also the latest attempt by lawmakers to restore congressional authority to decide whether to send troops into the fight, which repeal supporters said was improperly ceded to the White House with the approval of the Senate and House before failing to repeal open-ended war mandates.