Timeline of the War in Afghanistan (2001–present)

The following items form a partial timeline of the War in Afghanistan. For events prior to October 7, 2001, see 2001 in Afghanistan

War in Afghanistan (2001–present)
Part of the Global War on Terrorism, and
the continuous Afghanistan conflict

Clockwise from top-left: British Royal Marines during a clearance in Helmand Province; U.S. soldiers in a firefight with Taliban forces in Kunar Province; An Afghan National Army soldier surveying atop a Humvee; Afghan and U.S. soldiers move through snow in Logar Province; Canadian forces fire an M777 howitzer in Helmand Province; An Afghan soldier surveying a valley in Parwan Province; British troops preparing to board a Chinook during Operation Tor Shezada.
(For a map of the current military situation in Afghanistan, see here.)
Date7 October 2001 – present
(19 years and 4 months)
Location
Afghanistan
Status
Belligerents
Invasion (2001):
Northern Alliance
 United States
 United Kingdom
 Canada
 Australia
 Italy
 New Zealand[2]
 Germany[3]		 Invasion (2001):
Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan
al-Qaeda
055 Brigade[4][5]
IMU[6]
TNSM[7]
ETIM[8]
ISAF/RS phase (from 2001):
 Islamic Republic of Afghanistan
Resolute Support
(from 2015)[9]

ISAF/RS phase (from 2001):
Taliban

al-Qaeda
Taliban splinter groups
ISIL–KP[14]
Commanders and leaders
Ashraf Ghani
Joe Biden
Boris Johnson
Scott Morrison
Giuseppe Conte
Angela Merkel
Zoran Milanović
Austin S. Miller
John F. Campbell
 Mohammed Omar #
Akhtar Mansoor †
A. G. Baradar (POW)[26]
Hibatullah Akhundzada[11]
Jalaluddin Haqqani †[27]
Obaidullah Akhund †[26]
Dadullah Akhund †[26]
Gulbuddin Hekmatyar
Osama bin Laden †
Ayman al-Zawahiri
Muhammad Rasul (POW)[13]
Haji Najibullah[28]
Strength

Afghan National Security Forces: 352,000[29]
Resolute Support Mission: ~17,000[30]

Military Contractors: 20,000+[31]

Taliban: 60,000
(tentative estimate)[32]

HIG: 1,500–2,000+[36]
al-Qaeda: ~300[37][38][39] (~ 3,000 in 2001)[37]

IEHCA: 3,000–3,500[13]
Fidai Mahaz: 8,000[28]

ISIL–KP: 3,500–4,000 (2018, in Afghanistan)[40]
Casualties and losses

Afghan security forces:
65,596+ killed[41][42]
Northern Alliance:
200 killed[43][44][45][46][47]
Coalition:
Dead: 3,562

Wounded: 22,773

  • United States: 19,950[49]
  • United Kingdom: 2,188[50]
  • Canada: 635[51]
Contractors
Dead: 3,937[52][53]
Wounded: 15,000+[52][53]
Total killed: 69,699+ killed[54]

Taliban: 67,000–72,000+ killed[54][32][55][56][57][42]
al-Qaeda: 2,000+ killed[37]

ISIL–KP: 2,400+ killed[58]
Civilians killed: 38,480+ killed[59][60]

a The continued list includes nations who have contributed fewer than 200 troops as of November 2014.[61]

b The continued list includes nations who have contributed fewer than 200 troops as of May 2017.[62]

2001
Main article: 2001 in Afghanistan
  • October 7: (9 p.m. local time): the United States, supported by Britain, begins its attack on Afghanistan, launching bombs and cruise missiles against Taliban military and communications facilities and suspected terrorist training camps. Kabul, Kandahar, and Herat were hit.
  • October 9: A cruise missile kills four U.N. demining employees and injured four others in a building several miles east of Kabul.
  • October 19: Airborne invasion into Afghanistan by Rangers of the Third Ranger Battalion, Seventy Fifth Ranger Regiment and others seizing a Qandahar airfield named Objective Rhino.
  • October 26: Abdul Haq killed.
  • November 6: Zari, Keshendeh and Aq-Kupruk fall to the Northern Alliance[63]
  • November 8: Pakistan, being the only nation that still had diplomatic ties to the Taliban, asked Afghanistan's rulers to close their consulate in the city of Karachi.
  • November 9: Battle of Mazari Sharif.
  • November 10: The Taliban and Northern Alliance fighters both claimed that the strategic northern Afghan city of Mazari Sharif was taken by Northern Alliance fighters.
  • November 11: Journalists Pierre Billaud, Johanne Sutton, and Volker Handloik are ambushed and killed.
  • November 12: Taliban forces abandon Kabul ahead of advancing Northern Alliance troops.
  • November 14: Northern Alliance fighters took over Kabul, the Afghan capital, and then controlled virtually all the north of Afghanistan.
  • November 16: Mohammed Atef, the military chief of al-Qaeda, killed in a US airstrike.
  • November 19: Four foreign journalists - Harry Burton, Maria Grazia Cutuli, Azizullah Haidari, and Julio Fuentes – were ambushed and killed.
  • November 25: Northern Alliance gained control of Kunduz, the last Taliban stronghold in Northern Afghanistan, but only after Pakistani aircraft rescue several thousand Taliban and Al-Qaeda fighters and their military advisers.[64][65] The Taliban then controlled less than 25% of the country, mainly around Kandahar in the south.
    • U.S. Marines landed in force by helicopter at Camp Rhino south of Kandahar and began preparing it for fixed wing aircraft. They also occupied the main road between Kandahar and Pakistan.
    • Battle of Qala-i-Jangi. Forces loyal to bin Laden smuggled weapons into their prison near Mazar i Sharif after surrendering at Kunduz. They attacked the Northern Alliance guards and storm an armory. U.S. Special Forces call in air attacks. Hundreds of prisoners are killed as well as 40 Alliance fighters and one U.S. CIA operative, Johnny Michael Spann. Spann becomes the first U.S. and Coalition combat casualty. A young American named John Walker Lindh is found in the midst of the rebellion and extradited to the US on terrorism charges.
  • December 6: Kandahar falls.
  • December: The Battle of Tora Bora against Taliban and al-Qaeda fighters; Osama bin Laden reportedly escapes during this battle.
  • December: The Dasht-i-Leili massacre, where hundreds of Taliban were allegedly suffocated to death while being transported in metal containers.
  • December: The Bonn Agreement establishes the postwar system of government for Afghanistan, and establishes the International Security Assistance Force.
  • December 21: The interim Afghan government is sworn in.

2002
Main article: 2002 in Afghanistan
  • January 4: First US soldier dies due to hostile fire.
  • January 24, the Hazar Qadam raid sees Americans accidentally attack an allied compound collecting weapons for their Karzai government
  • February 14: Abdul Rahman, Afghan Aviation and Tourism Minister, killed by angry Hajj pilgrims.
  • March 1: Operation Anaconda against al-Qaeda fighters launched.
  • April 17: The 87-year-old exiled king of Afghanistan, Mohammed Zahir Shah, returns.
  • April 18: Tarnak Farm incident leaves four Canadians dead from friendly fire.
  • June 11: King Zahir Shah opens the first post-Taliban loya jirga.[66]
  • July 1: In Uruzgan province, a US AC-130 gunship struck a wedding party, killing 48 civilians and injuring 117. The United States claimed their plane had come under attack from anti-aircraft fire before the strike.
  • July 6: Vice President Abdul Qadir assassinated in Kabul.
  • September 5: 2002 Kabul bombing kills 30 people.

2003
Main article: 2003 in Afghanistan

2004
Main article: 2004 in Afghanistan
  • January 4 – Constitution approved by Loya Jirga.
  • January 26 – Constitution signed by President Hamid Karzai.
  • October 9 – 2004 Afghan presidential election. In the country's first direct election, Hamid Karzai wins the presidency with 55.4% of the vote.

2005
Main article: 2005 in Afghanistan

2006
Main articles: 2006 in Afghanistan and Coalition combat operations in Afghanistan in 2006

2007
Main articles: 2007 in Afghanistan and Coalition combat operations in Afghanistan in 2007

2008
Main articles: 2008 in Afghanistan and Coalition combat operations in Afghanistan in 2008

2009
Main articles: 2009 in Afghanistan and Coalition combat operations in Afghanistan in 2009

2010
Main article: 2010 in Afghanistan
  • February 12: Five innocent civilians including two pregnant women and a teenage girl killed in the botched Khataba raid.
  • February 21: Uruzgan helicopter attack kills 27-33 civilians including four women and a child in Uruzgan province.
  • Spring: Operation Moshtarak Phase I is led by US Marines to retake Marjah, in Helmand Province, from the Taliban.
  • Spring-Summer: U.S. Surge to Afghanistan sees its peak, as 20,000 soldiers are deployed to the south
  • June 23: General Stanley A. McChrystal, commander of the ISAF, resigns after controversial comments critical of the Obama administration were published in a magazine.
  • July 23: The Sangin airstrike kills a large number of Afghan civilians mostly women and children in Nangarhar province.
  • July 25: WikiLeaks releases 90,000 leaked documents pertaining to the war in Afghanistan.
  • September 18: Afghan Parliamentary Elections are held, widely criticized as fraudulent, although with notable instances of electoral institution impartiality.
  • Fall: Operation Moshtarak Phases II and III are held in Kandahar, driving the Taliban out of traditional safe-havens
  • Fall: Command of Regional Command South rotates from British to American command.

2011
Main article: 2011 in Afghanistan
  • January 26: The Afghan National Assembly is inaugurated.[72]
  • May 1: The number one Al-Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden is killed by U.S. Navy SEALs in Abbottabad, Pakistan, just miles from Islamabad.
  • May 23: 4 U.S. soldiers (2nd Battalion 27th Infantry Regiment) die and 1 wounded following an improvised explosive device attack in Kunar province.
  • June 4–6: The Battle Of Gewi Ridge takes place where a platoon of U.S. soldiers air-assaulted the mountain ridge of Gewi (Kunar province) for over-watch of a major re-supply convoy. Following the insertion, an intensive firefight lasting 52 hours takes place, resulting in the deaths of 50+ Taliban insurgents.
  • August 6: A CH-47 Chinook helicopter transporting 30 U.S. soldiers (including 17 Navy SEALs), 1 civilian interpreter and 7 Afghan troops is shot down in Wardak Province by RPG-wielding Taliban insurgents. There were no survivors of the crash. This incident marks the deadliest day for U.S. Forces in Afghanistan since the invasion in 2001.
  • August 11: Vengeance is exacted on the 11 Taliban militants involved in downing the CH-47 Chinook, who are killed in an F-16 airstrike. Meanwhile, five ISAF service members die following an improvised explosive device attack in the southern provinces.
  • December 9: Mohammed Ishmael, Ghaziabad district (Kunar province) police chief is killed in a suicide bombing of a mosque carried out by a 12-year-old Pakistani boy.

2012
Main article: 2012 in Afghanistan

2013
Main article: 2013 in Afghanistan

The army of the United States continues to conduct missions throughout Afghanistan, began closing forward operating bases (FOB).

See also

References
  1. ‘‘Al Qaeda’s Profile: Slimmer but More Menacing,’’ Christian Science Monitor, Sept. 9, 2003
  2. Crosby, Ron (2009). NZSAS: The First Fifty Years. Viking. ISBN 978-0-67-007424-2.
  3. "Operation Enduring Freedom Fast Facts". CNN. Retrieved 11 July 2017.
  4. "The elite force who are ready to die". the Guardian. 27 October 2001.
  5. Neville, Leigh, Special Forces in the War on Terror (General Military), Osprey Publishing, 2015 ISBN 978-1472807908, p.48
  6. "Pakistan's 'fanatical' Uzbek militants". BBC. 11 June 2014.
  7. "Pakistan's militant Islamic groups". BBC. 13 January 2002.
  8. "Evaluating the Uighur Threat". the long war journal. 9 October 2008.
  9. "News – Resolute Support Mission". Retrieved 4 October 2015.
  10. "Taliban storm Kunduz city". The Long War Journal. Retrieved 30 September 2015.
  11. The Taliban's new leadership is allied with al Qaeda, The Long War Journal, 31 July 2015
  12. Rod Nordland; Jawad Sukhanyar; Taimoor Shah (19 June 2017). "Afghan Government Quietly Aids Breakaway Taliban Faction". The New York Times. Retrieved 6 September 2017.
  13. Matthew DuPée (January 2018). "Red on Red: Analyzing Afghanistan's Intra-Insurgency Violence". Combating Terrorism Center. Retrieved 18 February 2018.
  14. Seldin, Jeff (18 November 2017). "Afghan Officials: Islamic State Fighters Finding Sanctuary in Afghanistan". VOA News. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 18 November 2017.
  15. "Uzbek militants in Afghanistan pledge allegiance to ISIS in beheading video". khaama.com.
  16. "Central Asian groups split over leadership of global jihad". The Long War Journal. 24 August 2015. Retrieved 27 August 2015.
  17. "Who is Lashkar-e-Jhangvi?". Voanews.com. 25 October 2016. Retrieved 2 June 2017.
  18. "ISIS 'OUTSOURCES' TERROR ATTACKS TO THE PAKISTANI TALIBAN IN AFGHANISTAN: U.N. REPORT". Newsweek. 15 August 2017.
  19. "Report: Iran pays $1,000 for each U.S. soldier killed by the Taliban". NBC News. 9 May 2010.
  20. Tabatabai, Ariane M. (9 August 2019). "Iran's cooperation with the Taliban could affect talks on U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan". The Washington Post.
  21. Martinez, Luis (10 July 2020). "Top Pentagon officials say Russian bounty program not corroborated". ABC News.
  22. Shams, Shamil (4 March 2020). "US-Taliban deal: How Pakistan's 'Islamist support' finally paid off". Deutsche Welle.
  23. Jamal, Umair (23 May 2020). "Understanding Pakistan's Take on India-Taliban Talks". The Diplomat.
  24. "Saudis Bankroll Taliban, Even as King Officially Supports Afghan Government". The New York Times. 12 June 2016.
  25. "China offered Afghan militants bounties to attack US soldiers: reports". Deutsche Welle. 31 December 2020.
  26. "'Afghan Taliban leader Mullah Omar is dead'". The Express Tribune. 29 July 2015. Retrieved 29 July 2015.
  27. "'The Kennedys of the Taliban movement' lose their patriarch". NBC News. Retrieved 19 March 2019.
  28. "Mullah Najibullah: Too Radical for the Taliban". Newsweek. 30 August 2013. Retrieved 22 August 2015.
  29. "The Afghan National Security Forces Beyond 2014: Will They Be Ready?" (PDF). Centre for Security Governance. February 2014.
  30. https://www.nato.int/cps/en/natohq/topics_8189.htm
  31. Peters, Heidi M.; Plagakis, Sofia (10 May 2019). "Department of Defense Contractor and Troop Levels in Afghanistan and Iraq: 2007-2018". crsreports.congress.gov. Congressional Research Service. Retrieved 4 December 2019.
  32. Akmal Dawi. "Despite Massive Taliban Death Toll No Drop in Insurgency". Voanews.com. Retrieved 10 August 2014.
  33. Rassler, Don; Vahid Brown (14 July 2011). "The Haqqani Nexus and the Evolution of al-Qaida" (PDF). Harmony Program. Combating Terrorism Center. Retrieved 2 August 2011.
  34. Reuters. "Sirajuddin Haqqani dares US to attack N Waziristan, by Reuters, Published: September 24, 2011". Tribune. Retrieved 10 April 2014.
  35. Perlez, Jane (14 December 2009). "Rebuffing U.S., Pakistan Balks at Crackdown". The New York Times.
  36. "Afghanistan after the Western Drawdown". Google books. 16 January 2015. Retrieved 13 August 2015.
  37. "In Afghanistan, al-Qaeda is working more closely with the Taliban, Pentagon says". the Washington post. 6 May 2016.
  38. Bill Roggio (26 April 2011). "How many al Qaeda operatives are now left in Afghanistan? – Threat Matrix". Longwarjournal.org. Archived from the original on 6 July 2014. Retrieved 10 April 2014.
  39. "Al Qaeda in Afghanistan Is Attempting A Comeback". The Huffington Post. 21 October 2012. Archived from the original on 10 December 2013. Retrieved 10 April 2014.
  40. http://undocs.org/S/2018/705
  41. Human Cost of the Post-9/11 Wars: Lethality and the Need for Transparency
  42. 2019 begins, ends with bloodshed in Afghanistan
  43. "Scores Killed in Fresh Kunduz Fighting". Foxnews.com. 26 November 2001. Retrieved 2 October 2008.
  44. Morello, Carol; Loeb, Vernon (6 December 2001). "Friendly fire kills 3 GIs". Post-Gazette. Retrieved 2 October 2008.
  45. Terry McCarthy/Kunduz (18 November 2001). "A Volatile State of Siege After a Taliban Ambush". Time. Archived from the original on 30 May 2012. Retrieved 2 October 2008.
  46. John Pike (9 December 2001). "VOA News Report". Globalsecurity.org. Retrieved 9 February 2010.
  47. "US Bombs Wipe Out Farming Village". Rawa.org. Retrieved 9 February 2010.
  48. UK military deaths in Afghanistan
  49. OPERATION ENDURING FREEDOM (OEF) U.S. CASUALTY STATUS FATALITIES as of: December 30, 2014, 10 a.m. EDT Archived 6 July 2009 at the Wayback Machine
  50. "Number of Afghanistan UK Military and Civilian casualties (7 October 2001 to 30 November 2014)" (PDF). www.gov.uk. Retrieved 28 June 2017.
  51. "Over 2,000 Canadians were wounded in Afghan mission: report". National Post. Retrieved 1 February 2012.
  52. "U.S. Department of Labor – Office of Workers' Compensation Programs (OWCP) – Defense Base Act Case Summary by Nation". Dol.gov. Retrieved 2 August 2011.
  53. T. Christian Miller (23 September 2009). "U.S. Government Private Contract Worker Deaths and Injuries". Projects.propublica.org. Retrieved 2 August 2011.
  54. Rod Nordland; Mujib Mashal (26 January 2019). "U.S. and Taliban Edge Toward Deal to End America's Longest War". The New York Times. Retrieved 28 January 2019.
  55. Iraj. "Deadliest Year for the ANSF: Mohammadi". Retrieved 17 July 2015.
  56. 7,000 killed (2015), 18,500 killed (2016), total of 25,500 reported killed in 2015–16
  57. New Year May Bring Renewed War to Afghanistan
    Over 2,500 Afghan soldiers killed from Jan-May: US report
    "'It's a Massacre': Blast in Kabul Deepens Toll of a Long War". New York Times. 27 January 2018.
  58. Seldin, Jeff (18 November 2017). "Afghan Officials: Islamic State Fighters Finding Sanctuary in Afghanistan". VOA News. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 18 November 2017.
  59. Daniel Brown (9 November 2018). "The wars in Iraq and Afghanistan have killed at least 500,000 people, according to a new report that breaks down the toll". Business Insider. Retrieved 28 January 2019.
  60. Crawford, Neta (August 2016). "Update on the Human Costs of War for Afghanistan and Pakistan, 2001 to mid-2016" (PDF). brown.edu. Retrieved 18 July 2017.
  61. "International Security Assistance Force (ISAF): Key Facts and Figures" (PDF).
  62. "Resolute Support Mission (RSM): Key Facts and Figures" (PDF).
  63. Independent Online, Taliban commander captured in Rebel victory, November 6, 2001
  64. Hersh, Seymour M. (2009-01-07). "Annals of National Security: The Getaway". The New Yorker. Retrieved 2010-08-14.
  65. "Breaking News, Weather, Business, Health, Entertainment, Sports, Politics, Travel, Science, Technology, Local, US & World News". msnbc.com. Archived from the original on December 16, 2005. Retrieved 2010-08-14.
  66. "South Asia | Former king urges Afghan unity". BBC News. 2002-06-11. Retrieved 2010-08-14.
  67. Matthias Gebauer (6 August 2010). "Germany to Pay $500,000 for Civilian Bombing Victims". Der Spiegel. Retrieved 9 August 2010.
  68. "French troops spearhead assault in Afghanistan". BBC News. 2009-12-17. Retrieved 2012-01-21.
  69. "French Afghan assault concludes". BBC News. 2009-12-18. Retrieved 2012-01-21.
  70. "French troops lead Afghan attack on Taliban". The Seattle Times. Associated Press. 2009-12-17. Archived from the original on January 29, 2010. Retrieved 2012-01-21.
  71. Karim Talbi (2009-12-18). "Afghanistan: démonstration de force de la Légion, cinq Américains blessés". AFP. Retrieved 2012-01-21.
  72. Rivera, Ray (January 26, 2011). "After Months of Turmoil, Karzai Opens Parliament" – via NYTimes.com.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.