A batch of some 150 Japanese Ground Self-Defense Force left for Iraq on Sunday, as the first group of 500 members of the ninth contingent of the Ground Self-Defense Force Iraqi mission, Kyodo News said.

The remaining members will be dispatched in several groups. The troops will stay in Iraq for three months to conduct humanitarian reconstruction assistance in Samawah, southern Iraq, said Kyodo.

Earlier in the day, about 100 Japanese ground troops returned to Tokyo's Haneda airport after finishing their six-month dispatch in Iraq.

Japan has stationed some 600 ground troops in Samawah for a non- combat reconstruction mission since early 2004.

On Dec. 8, 2005, Japan decided to extend the ground troop deployment for one year. Under the plan, the troops could pull out depending on a series of conditions, including Iraq's political and reconstruction process and local security situation.

Source: Xinhua