(Image Source: U.S. Department of Defense)

BY CHARLES MCKEAGUE

ANCHOR CHRISTIAN BRYANT

The Iraq war is over. The last remaining U.S. troops crossed the Iraqi border into Kuwait on Sunday - marking the end of a very controversial war.

“It’s over. The last convoy has left Iraq. ... The border crossing gate. … Closing...  And that is a signature and symbolic moment.” (CNN)

“The gates are closed. ... What a momentous day it is.” (MSNBC)

With the war now officially at a close, the media is taking a look back at the last nine years and evaluating. But The New York Times notes that it will take years to truly realize the war’s effect.

“History’s final judgment on the war, which claimed nearly 4,500 American lives and cost almost $1 trillion, may not be determined for decades. But it will be forever tainted by the early missteps and miscalculations, the faulty intelligence over Saddam Hussein’s weapons programs ... and a litany of American abuses...”

Still, there was happiness as the troops left. Momentous, joyous, elated - just some of the words being used to describe the troops’ attitudes. MSNBC explains the scene.

“The U.S. military really only has one mission left, and that is to get all of this equipment and all of these troops home for the holidays. This war began here in Kuwait nearly nine years ago. This is where it is ending. It was a dignified end to a problematic war. The long convoy … rolled in to Kuwait, in an organized line. This time, all the armor wasn't necessary. The troops left Iraq without firing a shot. … These are the last 480 American soldiers to serve in Iraq following more than a million before them.”

And CNN brings perspective from some troops themselves.  Here are a few - in their own words.

“It's been in planning for more than a year now. Tremendous amount of coordination and synchronization every day but the amount of bases we've closed, redeployed equipment, brought all these troops out, it is quite a accomplishment.

“It is a feeling of elation. It really is. To see what we've accomplished in the last 8 1/2 years and to be part of the last movement out of Iraq, hard to put words to it right now.”

But, while many are celebrating the day - former U.S. Ambassador to the U.N. John Bolton tells Fox News he foresees this withdrawal will be a big mistakes.

“I'm very troubled by this moment. Obviously, we're happy to see our service members safe and, hopefully, reunited with their families, but this withdrawal is a big mistake from the perspective of what the United States fought for in Iraq and what our strategic interests are in the region. As a whole. Already today, we see reports of sectarian divisiveness inside Iraq. … We can see Iran taking advantage of our withdrawal, both in Iraq and around the region. I think this is going to turn out to be a big mistake, I hope I am wrong.”

The AP reports well more than 100,000 Iraqi lives were lost during the war.