ERBIL, Kurdistan Region of Iraq - The German army will withdraw from its field base near Erbil International Airport by the end of September, citing concerns over the loss of US air defense protection as Washington scales back its military presence in the Kurdistan Region, according to a report published Friday by the German magazine Der Spiegel.

Germany’s defense ministry told lawmakers on Friday that the rapid withdrawal is necessary as the US drawdown from the site, also scheduled for completion in September, will leave Bundeswehr personnel vulnerable given the absence of US Patriot air defense systems, according to the outlet.

The camp near Erbil airport has come under increased security pressure in recent months, with Iran and its proxies repeatedly having bombarded the site amid the regional conflict.

Although the attacks were not aimed at German forces, soldiers stationed at the camp spent “many nights in protective bunkers” because of their proximity to US troops, with most incoming missiles and drones intercepted by American air defenses, accoding to the report.

In March, the Italian military announced that it would be temporarily withdrawing its forces from an Italian base in Erbil following a missile strike that caused no casualties. A French base shared with Kurdish Peshmerga located in Makhmour was targeted by the pro-Iran Iraqi militia Ashab al-Kahf in the same month, leading to the death of a French soldier.

Only around 30 German soldiers remain at the airport base due to what the ministry described as a volatile security situation that has persisted for months. The camp is expected to be fully closed in the coming weeks.

Despite the withdrawal, German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius affirmed that he does not plan to end support for the Kurdish Peshmerga. The defense ministry said a handful of German military advisors will remain in Erbil after September and will continue advising local forces from the German Consulate General rather than the airport base.

Germany deployed troops to northern Iraq in 2015 to train and support the Peshmerga in the fight against the Islamic State (ISIS), maintaining an advisory presence in the region for the past decade.

The withdrawal decision drew criticism from the Kurdish Community in Germany (KGD), an advocacy group for Kurds in Germany, which said it regretted the planned closure.

In a statement on X, the group said the Kurdistan Region “was in recent years a reliable partner of Germany and the international anti-ISIS coalition.” It added that the Peshmerga “paid a high blood toll in the fight against the so-called Islamic State” and thereby “also contributed to the security of Europe.”

The organization said that, “in a phase of profound geopolitical changes in the Middle East,” the Bundeswehr withdrawal sends a “problematic signal.” It warned of a risk that “the security-policy and political interests of the Kurds will not be sufficiently taken into account in the future reordering of the region.”

It appealed to the German government to “continue the strategic partnership with the Kurdistan Region” and to “sustainably strengthen its political and security-policy engagement for the region.”

In February, Berlin temporarily withdrew a number of “non-mission-critical” personnel from the Kurdistan Region, describing the move as a precaution amid rising tensions in the Middle East, which would become realized with the outbreak of the US-Israeli war on Iran on February 28.