US forces have begun reducing their numbers in Iraq after Iraqi authorities declared "victory" over ISIS, an Iraqi government spokesman said on Monday, athough he stressed it was still in its early stages and doesnt mark the beginning of a complete pullout of American troops. "The American forces have begun reducing their numbers as victory has been achieved over ISIS," Spokesman Saad al-Hadithi told several news agencies. "Coordination continues, to maintain (US) assistance to the Iraqi forces in accordance with their requirements." Al-Hadithi spoke just hours after AP reported the American drawdown — the first since the war against ISIS was launched over three years ago. Iraqi forces backed by a US-led international coalition last year captured all the territory that fell under ISIS control in 2014 and 2015, including the northern city of Mosul, which served as the militants de facto capital. Dozens of American soldiers have been transported from Iraq to Afghanistan on daily flights over the past week, along with weapons and equipment, according to Western contractors at a US-led coalition base in Iraq. An AP reporter at the Al-Asad base in western Iraq saw troop movements reflecting the contractors account. A Pentagon report released in November said there were 8,892 US troops in Iraq as of late September. The US first launched airstrikes against ISIS in Iraq in August 2014. At the time the military intervention was described as "limited," but as Iraqs military struggled to roll back the extremists, the US-led coalitions footprint in the country steadily grew. "Weve had a recent change of mission and soon well be supporting a different theater of operations in the coming month," US Army 1st Lt. William John Raymond told the AP at Al-Asad.