USA President Barack Obama reaches Iraq capital Baghdad on an unannounced visit

BAGHDAD On a trip shrouded in secrecy, President Barack Obama flew into Iraq on Tuesday for a brief look at a war he opposed as a candidate and now vows to end as commander in chief….

From Reuters:

President Barack Obama made an unannounced visit to Baghdad today, marking a new chapter in his strategy to wind down the unpopular war in Iraq and shift the United States’ military focus to Afghanistan.

The White House said that Obama would meet US commanders and troops. He would also speak to Iraqi leaders, but would call by telephone rather than see them in person because poor visibility prevented helicopter travel around the capital, White House spokesman Robert Gibbs said.

Flying secretly from Istanbul at the end of his first major international tour, Obama was to visit the scene of a war that he inherited from his predecessor, George W. Bush. It was his first visit to Iraq since before his November 2008 election victory, which was bolstered by his campaign pledge to start bringing US troops home.