Trump 'to order further troop withdrawal' from Afghanistan and Iraq

The US military expects President Donald Trump to order a further withdrawal of troops from Afghanistan and Iraq, according to defence officials quoted by US media.

Those in Afghanistan will be cut from 4,500-5,000 down to 2,500 by mid-January, officials said. In Iraq they will be reduced from 3,000 to 2,500.

President Trump has previously said he wants "all" troops home by Christmas.

He is refusing to concede the 3 November election.

The withdrawal should be finished by 15 January, the Wall Street Journal reported, just days before President-elect Joe Biden's inauguration.

President Trump has long called for US troops to come home and has criticised US military interventions for being costly and ineffective.