LONDON - British troops have begun pulling out from their headquarters in the southern Iraqi city of Basra, the BBC reported on Sunday, citing the Iraqi head of security in the province.
Britain's domestic Press Association also reported that unidentified government sources had confirmed that the pull-out from the Basra palace headquarters was under way.
A spokesman for the British defence ministry declined to confirm the reports, but told AFP: "What is being talked about is an ongoing operation, and we will not comment."
The defence ministry later said in a statement: "Handing over Basra Palace to the Iraqi authorities has long been our intention, as we have stated publicly on numerous occasions. We expect the handover to occur in the next few days."
"The Iraqi security forces want to take full responsibility for their own security and the handover is a step towards that goal."
There are about 5,500 British troops in Iraq, most of whom are based in and around Basra, though that number is set to drop to around 5,000 by the end of the year.
Prime Minister Gordon Brown has said in the past that after handing over Basra palace, British troops would take on an "overwatch" role, and handle training and supervision of local forces, while also supporting them if required.
Almost 160 British soldiers have died in Iraq since the March 2003 invasion.
Reports of the pull-out comes amid a British backlash over the United States' handling of post-invasion Iraq, with two top military commanders slamming Washington over the weekend.
Retired Major General Tim Cross, the top British officer involved in planning post-war Iraq, said in an interview with the Sunday Mirror newspaper that he raised serious concerns with the then US defence secretary Donald Rumsfeld about the possibility of the country descending into chaos.
But Rumsfeld "ignored" or "dismissed" his warnings, he said.
On Saturday, the head of the British Army during the 2003 invasion launched a fierce attack on the United States over its handling of troubled Iraq since.
General Sir Mike Jackson branded US post-invasion policy "intellectually bankrupt" and said Rumsfeld was "one of the most responsible for the current situation in Iraq."
The Pentagon said last week that the US military was ready to intervene in southern Iraq to quell any unrest as the British prepared to pull out from the base.
Brown, who took over from Tony Blair as British prime minister in June, has defended the involvement of British troops in Iraq, insisting last month that they had an "important job to do" in the war-torn country.
In a written response to a letter from opposition leader Sir Menzies Campbell, Brown also rejected a request for a predetermined timetable for the complete withdrawal of British troops in Iraq.
09/02/2007 20:13 GMT