21st
Century Wars
Wars
and conflicts of the 21st Century are featured on this
page in alphabetical order. This is an outgrowth of the
popular New
and Recent Conflicts
page. This shows only active wars and conflicts waged in
from 2001 to the present. Each entry shows the name(s) of
the conflict, the year it began, the participants in the
war, and any pertinent details. Included are links to
pertinent History Guy pages and external
links.
Afghanistan
War (also known as: "Operation Enduring
Freedom,")
(2001-Present) --United States, Afghan government
vs. Taliban and al-Qaida. As
of 01-07-04, the guerilla war in Afghanistan is heating
up again, due in part to the emphasis American military
is now putting on Iraq, and to the Taliban now apparently
having regrouped itself after being ousted from power in
2001/2002.
al-Qaida
War (also known as: "Operation Enduring Freedom," "Global
War on Terror ")
(at least 1998-Present) --United States vs. al-Qaida
network of Osama bin Laden. The
American public first became aware of al-Qaida in August
of 1998, when the terrorist group blew up two U.S.
Embassies in Africa. The U.S. soon responded with
Tomahawk Cruise Missile attacks on an al-Qaida training
camp in Afghanistan and a suspected chemical weapons
factory in Sudan. The factory turned out to not be
related to any terrorist group.
Below
are details from the 21st Century:
Terrorist
attack on the World Trade Center and the
Pentagon
(September 11, 2001)--Terrorists,
belonging to Osama bin Laden's al-Qaida organization,
hijacked four United States commercial passenger
planes and flew them into the World Trade Center in
New York City and the Pentagon in Virginia. The fourth
plane crashed in Pennsylvania.
U.S.
Operations Against al-Qaida in
Somalia
(2006-Present)
Baluchistan
War (2003-Present)
--Pakistan Government vs. Baluch rebels.
This
is the latest in a series of rebellions by the Baluch
ethnic group in the region of Pakistan known as
Baluchistan. The Pakistanin governement is fighting this
war concurrently with the War in Waziristan (See
below).
Bangladesh
Army Mutiny of 2009
Burundi
Civil War (1994-Present)
--Burundi Government vs. Hutu rebels
Central
African Republic Army Mutiny
(May 28, 2001-Present)--Central African Republic
government, Libya and rebels from Congo (Front for the
Liberation of Congo) vs. C.A.R. Army rebels.
Following
a failed army coup on Monday the 28th, fighting between
loyal and rebel troops escalated. Forces from Libya,
Congo and possibly Chad entered the C.A.R. to help the
government. The rebel forces continue to operate in the
border areas, provoking clashes between the C.A.R. and
Chad.
Chad
Rebellion (2005-Present)
--Chadian
rebels and Sudanese-backed mercenaries attacked the
Chadian capital in an attempt to overthrow President
Derby. With the aid of French military intelligence, the
rebels were beaten back. The battle cost at least 350
lives. Most of the Chad countryside is in rebel hands.
This is related to the ongoing Darfur War (see
below)
Chechen
War
(also known as: the Second Chechen
War)
(1999-Present) --Russian Government vs. Chechen
irregulars/insurgents. After
the initial Russian invasion of semi-independent Chechnya
in 1999, the conflict settled down to a classic guerilla
war pitting the Russian military and security forces
against both urban and rural-based guerilla fighters.
Over the past several years, the Chechens have taken the
war to Russia's heartland with several deadly terrorist
attacks against Russian civilian targets, the most famous
such attack being the seizure of a Moscow movie theater,
which resulted in hundreds of casualties.
Colombian
Civil War (1964-Present)
--Colombian Government (with increasing aid from the
United States vs. Marxist rebels and various narcotics
cartels.
Cote
de Ivorie (Ivory Coast) Civil War (2002-Present)
--Ivory Coast Government vs. (mostly) Muslim rebels.
France has several thousand "peacekeeping" troops in the
nation, but France clearly favors the government.
As
of 01-07-04, it appears that the government forces are
attempting to dislodge a long-term cease-fire that has
held for several months.
Darfur
War (Feb.
2003-Present) --The
Sudanese region of Darfur is in rebellion against the
Sudanese government. In response to the rebellion, the
government is sponsoring the Arab "Janjaweed" militias,
who are conducting a campaign of genocide on the civilian
population of Darfur, as well as launching attacks on
refugees in neighboring Chad. This is related to the
recent Chad Rebellion (see above)
The
Ethiopia-Somalia War—(2006-
Present): In the latest phase of the long Somali Civil
War, Ethiopia intervened in late 2006 to aid the
internationally-recognized Somali government based in the
city of Baidoa. The Transitional Government of Somalia
(TGS) is oppossed by the Islamic Courts Union (ICU), an
Islamist group which seized control of the national
capital of Mogadushu earlier in 2006 from a coalition of
warlords.
Gaza
War 2008-2009
Gaza
War 2012: Operation Pillar of Defense--Israel's
latest Gaza War against Hamas
Georgia-Russia
War (2008)--The
2008 war between Georgia and Russia which began as a war
between Georgia and South Ossetia.
Honduras
Coup of June, 2009
India-Bangladesh
Border Conflict
(April 18-April 20, 2001) India vs. Bangladesh.
--Bangladesh
border troops seized a village near the border which
Bangladesh has claimed in the past. At least 18 troops
were killed from both sides.
India's
Maoist Insurgency/Naxalite Guerrilla War
(May 25, 1967-Present):
Beginning with a peasant uprising
in the town of Naxalbari, this Marxist/Maoist rebellion
sputters on in the Indian countryside. The guerrillas
operate among the impoverished peasants and fight both
the government security forces and the private
paramilitary groups funded by wealthy landowners. Most
fighting takes place in the states of Andhra Pradesh,
Mahrashtra, Orissa and Madhya Pradesh.
Iraq
War
(also known as: "Operation Iraqi Freedom," "Operation
Telic", Gulf War II, The Third Persian Gulf
War)
(2003-2011) --"The Coalition of the Willing" (United
States, United Kingdom, Spain, Italy, Poland, Thailand,
Bulgaria) vs. Iraqi irregular forces/insurgents, Al-Qaida
in Iraq (Zarqawi's group), and various Shiite and Sunni
militias--By
far the most visible, most controversial, and most
significant conflict on earth at the moment. President
Bush considers this a vital part of the overall Global
War on Terror, while many, including significant numbers
of Americans, do not agree that this is a legitimate part
of the the anti-terror campaign. Regardless of its
inclusion or not in the Global War on Terror, the war in
Iraq continues, despite the Dec. 2003 capture of Saddam
Hussein.
Gulf
War II--History
Guy page under construction
Wars
of Iraq--History
Guy page
Iraq
Coalition Casualties
2003
Iraq war timeline - Wikipedia
CNN.com
Specials
Operation
Telic Details of British Casualties
DefendAmerica
News - Facing the Iraqi Threat
Israel-Palestinian
War
(also known as: al-Aqsa Intifada, 2nd
Intifada)
(2001-2005) --Israel vs. Palestinian Authority, Hamas,
Islamic Jihad and other Palestinian militias and guerilla
groups. While
overall violence has subsided, Palestinian suicide
attacks still occur. as do Israeli strikes at Palestinian
targets. Both types of actions often initiates a new
cycle of attacks. Since the death of Yasser Arafat and
the successful Palestinian elections, the prospect of a
lasting peace are somewhat improved.
Israel-Syrian
Conflict
(1948-Present) --Israel vs. Syria.
Israel
and Syria first clashed in 1948-1949, as Syria joined
other Arab nations in the First Arab-Israeli War.
Subsequent full-scale wars between them erupted in the
1967 Arab-Israeli War, the 1973 Arab-Israeli War, and the
1982 Israeli Invasion of Lebanon. In-between these major
wars, the two enemies often clash along their mutual
border and also in neighboring Lebanon, which Israel has
invaded several times, and where the Syrian military kept
an occupation/peacekeeping force from the mid 1970s to
the Spring of 2005. Below are clashes since from 2001
onward.
--Israeli
Airstrike on Syrian Forces (July 1,
2001)-
Israeli
warplanes struck a Syrian Army radar post and
anti-aircraft site in Lebanon in retaliation for a
Hezbollah attack on the Israel-Lebanon border in an
area called the Cheba Farms. Israel believes Syria
controls the Hezbollah and struck the Syrians in order
to "send a message."
--Israeli
Airstrike on Syrian Forces (April 15,
2001)--Israel
dropped six bombs on a Syrian Army radar post in
Lebanon in retaliation for a Hezbollah attack on the
Israel-Lebanon border. Israel believes Syria controls
the Hezbollah. Three Syrian troops died in the
attack.
ISIS
War (2014-Present)
-The Islamic State's attempt to carve out a new Caliphate
out of Syria and Iraq grew out of the civil wars in those
two Arab states. Beginning in August, 2014, the United
States and other nations began an intervention in this
conflict
Korean
Conflict (1950-Present)
--North Korea vs. South Korea and the United States.
Following
the well-known Korean War of 1950-1953, cross-border
incursions continued, as did naval battles, and North
Korean acts of terrorism directed at South Korea and
United States forces stationed in the
South.
--Border
Clash
(November
21, 2001)--The
first cross-border shooting of the year between North
and South Korea. North Korean troops fired several
shots at a South Korean guard post. Fire was returned
by the South Koreans.
Macedonian
Albanian Uprising (2001)
--Macedonian Government vs. ethnic Albanian rebels.
The
Albanian rebels sought recognition and autonomy from the
government. NATO and U.S.-backed peace talks resolved the
conflict.
Mount
Elgon insurgency
--(2005-2008)
The Sabaot Land Defence Force militia revolted in the
Mount Elgon area, Western Kenya. The Kenyan military
defeated the militia in 2008
Nepal
Civil War
(1996-Present)
--Nepal Government vs. Marxist rebels.
The
rebels seek to destroy the Royal Monarchy and replace it
with a Marxist/Maoist system.
Attacks
continue as both sides seek to gain an advantage over the
other.
Sa'dah
al-Houthi Rebellion in Yemen
(2004-Present)-While
this war remained localized in northern Yemen for years,
and sparked a short Saudi intervention against the Shiite
Houthis, recent political upheavals in Yemen aided the
Houthi cause, enabling the rebels to occupy the capital
city in 2014.
Solomon
Islands Unrest
(2006) Solomon Islands Government, Australia, New Zealand
vs. rioters --Following
the election of a new Prime Minister, severe rioting
broke out which drove many islanders of Chinese descent
out of the Solomons. Australia and New Zealand sent
troops to restore order. The riots began on April
18.
Sri
Lankan Civil War
(1983–2009)
Thailand
Political Unrest
(2006 –Present) Thail government vs. Protesters
--Thailand's
current political crisis began in 2006 with
Thai
Muslim Rebellion
(2003 – Present) Thailand vs. Muslim Separatists
--Thailand's
Muslim population, located in the south near the border
with Malaysia, rebelled in 2003. A similar campaign of
violence hit the south in the 1970s and
1980s.
Thai-Myanmar
(Burma) Border Conflict
(Feb., 2001 and May, 2001) Thailand vs. Myanmar
(Burma)--Myanmar's
very long civil war spilled over into Thailand on at
least two occasions in 2001.
Ukraine Civil War
(2014-Present)-Pro-Russian
rebels, with military aid from Russia, have seized Crimea
and large swaths of eastern Ukraine.
Waziristan
War (2003
– Present) Pakistan vs. Taliban/al-Qaida
Insurgents--Muslim
extremists allied with the Afghan Taliban and the
al-Qaida terrorist network battle Pakistani troops in the
mountainous Waziri region of northwest
Pakistan.