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1. Shard Calculation

Query:

Response:

Calculated Shard: 62 (from laksa049)

2. Crawled Status Check

Query:

curl -X POST \
  'http://laksa062.int.ahrefs:8124/' \
  -H 'Content-Type: text/plain' \
  -H 'X-ClickHouse-Database: crawler3' \
  -H 'Authorization: Basic YXBpOg==' \
  -d 'SELECT getAhrefsURLFromUnparsed(src_unparsed) AS found_url, ifNull(toUnixTimestamp(download_stamp), 0) AS crawl_time, ifNull(toUnixTimestamp(props_url_first_seen), 0) AS first_indexed_time, download_http_code AS http_code, src_unparsed AS src_unparsed, src_root_hash AS src_root_hash, history_drop_reason AS history_drop_reason, meta_title AS meta_title, meta_descriptions AS meta_descriptions, attrs_boilerpipe_text AS attrs_boilerpipe_text, attrs_markdown AS attrs_markdown, attrs_readable_markdown AS attrs_readable_markdown, meta_canonical AS meta_canonical FROM crawler3.page_info_local FINAL PREWHERE (src_root_hash, src_unparsed) IN ((getAhrefsRootHashFromUnparsed(getAhrefsUnparsedNoserviceFromURL(\'https://www.britannica.com/event/Afghanistan-War\')), getAhrefsUnparsedNoserviceFromURL(\'https://www.britannica.com/event/Afghanistan-War\'))) FORMAT JSONEachRow'

Response:

{"found_url":"https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/event\/Afghanistan-War","crawl_time":1775751266,"first_indexed_time":1467196318,"http_code":200,"src_unparsed":"com,britannica!www,\/event\/Afghanistan-War s443","src_root_hash":"5455945239613777662","history_drop_reason":null,"meta_title":"Afghanistan War | History, Casualties, Combatants, Facts, & Timeline | Britannica","meta_descriptions":["Afghanistan War, international conflict beginning in 2001 that was triggered by the September 11 attacks. U.S. forces quickly toppled the Taliban (the faction that ruled Afghanistan and provided sanctuary for al-Qaeda) in the first months of the war, only to face years of insurgency led by a reconstituted Taliban."],"attrs_boilerpipe_text":"Top Questions\nWhat was the cause of the Afghanistan War?\nWhat were the three phases of the Afghanistan War?\nWhat was the outcome of the U.S. troop surge in Afghanistan under Obama?\nHow many NATO troops were killed during the Afghanistan War?\nWhat was the impact of the Afghanistan War on civilians?\nNews\n•\nAfghanistan War\n,  international conflict in\nAfghanistan\nbeginning in 2001 that was triggered by the\nSeptember 11 attacks\nand consisted of three phases. The first phase—toppling the\nTaliban\n(the ultraconservative political and religious faction that ruled Afghanistan and provided sanctuary for\nal-Qaeda\n, perpetrators of the September 11 attacks)—was brief, lasting just two months. The second phase, from 2002 until 2008, was marked by a\nU.S.\nstrategy of defeating the Taliban militarily and rebuilding core institutions of the\nAfghan\nstate. The third phase, a turn to classic counterinsurgency doctrine, began in 2008 and accelerated with U.S. Pres.\nBarack Obama\n’s 2009 decision to temporarily increase the U.S. troop presence in Afghanistan. The larger force was used to\nimplement\na strategy of protecting the population from Taliban attacks and supporting efforts to reintegrate insurgents into Afghan society. The strategy came coupled with a timetable for the withdrawal of the foreign forces from Afghanistan; beginning in 2011, security responsibilities would be gradually handed over to the Afghan military and police. The new approach largely failed to achieve its aims. Insurgent attacks and civilian casualties remained stubbornly high, while many of the Afghan military and police units taking over security duties appeared to be ill-prepared to hold off the Taliban. By the time the U.S. and\nNATO\ncombat mission formally ended in December 2014, the 13-year Afghanistan War had become the longest\nwar\never fought by the\nUnited States\n. American military\ncasualties\nincluded some 2,400 service members killed and some 20,700 others wounded.\nPrelude to the September 11 attacks\nThe joint U.S. and\nBritish\ninvasion of Afghanistan in late 2001 was preceded by over two decades of war in Afghanistan (\nsee\nAfghan War\n). On December 24, 1979, Soviet tanks rumbled across the\nAmu Darya\nRiver and into Afghanistan, ostensibly to restore stability following a coup that brought to power a pair of Marxist-Leninist political groups—the People’s (Khalq) Party and the Banner (Parcham) Party. But the Soviet presence touched off a nationwide rebellion by fighters—known as the\nmujahideen\n—who drew upon\nIslam\nas a uniting source of inspiration. These fighters won extensive covert backing from\nPakistan\n,\nSaudi Arabia\n, and the United States and were joined in their fight by foreign volunteers (who soon formed a network, known as\nal-Qaeda\n, to coordinate their efforts). The\nguerrilla war\nagainst the Soviet forces led to their departure in 1989. In the Soviets’ absence, the\nmujahideen\nousted Afghanistan’s Soviet-backed government and established a transitional government.\nThe mujahideen were politically fragmented, however, and in 1994 armed conflict\nescalated\n. The Taliban emerged and in 1996 seized\nKabul\n. It instituted a severe interpretation of\nIslamic law\nthat, for example, forbade female education and prescribed the severing of hands, or even\nexecution\n, as punishment for petty crimes. That same year,\nal-Qaeda\nleader\nOsama bin Laden\nwas welcomed to Afghanistan (having been expelled from Sudan) and established his organization’s headquarters there. With al-Qaeda’s help, the Taliban won control of over 90 percent of Afghan territory by the summer of 2001. On September 9 of that year, al-Qaeda hit men carried out the assassination of famed mujahideen leader Ahmad Shah Masoud, who at the time was leading the\nNorthern Alliance\n(a loose coalition of mujahideen militias that maintained control of a small section of northern Afghanistan) as it battled the Taliban and who had unsuccessfully sought greater U.S. backing for his efforts.\nThe September 11 attacks and the\nU.S.\n-\nBritish\ninvasion\nThe hijacking and crashing of four U.S. jetliners on September 11, 2001, brought instant attention to Afghanistan. The plot had been hatched by al-Qaeda, and some of the 19 hijackers had trained in Afghanistan. In the aftermath of the attacks, the administration of U.S. Pres.\nGeorge W. Bush\ncoalesced around a strategy of first ousting the Taliban from Afghanistan and dismantling al-Qaeda, though others contemplated actions in\nIraq\n, including long-standing plans for toppling Pres.\nSaddam Hussein\n. Bush demanded that Taliban leader Mullah\nMohammed Omar\n“deliver to [the] United States authorities all the leaders of al-Qaeda who hide in your land,” and when Omar refused, U.S. officials began\nimplementing\na plan for war.\nThe campaign in Afghanistan started covertly on September 26, with a\nCentral Intelligence Agency\n(CIA) team known as Jawbreaker arriving in the country and, working with anti-Taliban allies, initiating a strategy for overthrowing the regime. U.S. officials hoped that by partnering with the Afghans they could avoid\ndeploying\na large force to Afghanistan. Pentagon officials were especially concerned that the United States not be drawn into a protracted occupation of Afghanistan, as had occurred with the Soviets more than two decades prior. The United States relied primarily on the\nNorthern Alliance\n, which had just lost Massoud but had regrouped under other commanders, including\nTajik\nleader Mohammed Fahim and Abdul Rashid Dostum, an\nUzbek\n. The Americans also teamed with anti-Taliban\nPashtuns\nin southern Afghanistan, including a little-known tribal leader named\nHamid Karzai\n.\nBritannica Quiz\nPick Your Battles Quiz\nThe CIA team was soon joined by U.S. and British special forces\ncontingents\n, and together they provided arms, equipment, and advice to the Afghans. They also helped coordinate targeting for the air campaign, which began on October 7, 2001, with U.S. and British war planes pounding Taliban targets, thus marking the public start of Operation Enduring Freedom. In late October,\nNorthern Alliance\nforces began to overtake a series of towns formerly held by the Taliban. The forces worked with U.S. assistance, but they defied U.S. wishes when, on November 13, they marched into Kabul as the Taliban retreated without a fight.\nKandahar\n, the largest city in southern Afghanistan and the Taliban’s spiritual home, fell on December 6, marking the end of Taliban power. It had been besieged by a force led by Karzai that moved in from the north and one commanded by Gul Agha Sherzai that advanced from the south; both operated with heavy assistance from the\nUnited States\n. As the Taliban leadership retreated into Afghanistan’s rural areas and across the border to\nPakistan\n, anti-Taliban figures\nconvened\nat a\nUnited Nations\n(UN)-sponsored conference in Bonn,\nGermany\n. With behind-the-scenes maneuvering by the United States,\nKarzai\nwas selected to lead the country on an\ninterim\nbasis.\nGo beyond the basics with trusted, in-depth knowledge for professionals, students, and lifelong learners.\nSUBSCRIBE\nAn intensive manhunt for Omar,\nbin Laden\n, and al-Qaeda deputy chief\nAyman al-Zawahiri\nwas undertaken. Prior to the killing of bin Laden by U.S. forces in 2011 (\nsee below\n), the Americans were believed to have come closest to bin Laden in the December 2001 battle of Tora Bora (bin Laden’s mountain stronghold). But bin Laden was thought to have managed to have slipped into Pakistan with the help of Afghan and Pakistani forces that were supposedly helping the Americans. Critics later questioned why the U.S. military had allowed Afghan forces to lead the assault on the cave complex at Tora Bora rather than doing it themselves. (Indeed, Democratic presidential candidate Sen.\nJohn Kerry\nmade this\ncriticism\nrepeatedly during the 2004 general election campaign.)\nAl-Qaeda\nsubsequently reestablished its base of operations in the tribal areas that form Pakistan’s northwest border with Afghanistan. Omar and his top Taliban lieutenants settled in and around the Pakistani city of\nQuetta\n, in the remote southwestern province of\nBalochistān\n. One of the final major battles of the first phase of the war came in March 2002 with Operation Anaconda in the eastern province of Paktia, which involved U.S. and Afghan forces fighting some 800 al-Qaeda and Taliban militants. The operation also marked the entrance of other countries’ troops into the war:\nspecial operations forces\nfrom\nAustralia\n, Canada,\nDenmark\n,\nFrance\n, Germany, and\nNorway\nparticipated.\nIraq takes center stage\nWith the ouster of the Taliban and al-Qaeda, the international focus shifted to reconstruction and nation-building efforts in Afghanistan. In April 2002 Bush announced a “\nMarshall Plan\n” for Afghanistan in a speech at the\nVirginia Military Institute\n, promising substantial financial assistance. But from the start, development efforts in Afghanistan were inadequately funded, as attention had turned among U.S. officials to the looming\nconfrontation\nin Iraq. Between 2001 and 2009, just over $38 billion in humanitarian and reconstruction assistance to Afghanistan was appropriated by the U.S. Congress. More than half the money went to training and equipping Afghan security forces, and the remainder represented a fraction of the amount that experts said would be required to develop a country that had consistently ranked near the bottom of global\nhuman development\nindices. The aid program was also bedeviled by waste and by confusion over whether civilian or military authorities had responsibility for leading education, health, agriculture, and other development projects.\nDespite military commitments from dozens of U.S. allies, the United States initially argued against allowing the other foreign forces—operating as the\nInternational Security Assistance Force (ISAF)—to\ndeploy\nbeyond the Kabul area. That choice was directed by the\nPentagon\n, which insisted on a “light footprint” out of concern that Afghanistan would become a drag on U.S. resources as attention shifted to Iraq (\nsee\nIraq War\n). When ISAF did begin to venture beyond Kabul, its efforts were hampered by the “caveats” of its component countries—restrictions that kept all but a handful of the militaries from actively engaging in the fight against the Taliban and al-Qaeda. The force, overseen by the\nNorth Atlantic Treaty Organization\n(NATO) in the organization’s first mission outside Europe, was also hamstrung by a lack of troops as international commitments to Afghanistan flagged.\nThe\nUnited States\nconsistently represented the largest foreign force in Afghanistan, and it\nbore\nthe heaviest losses. By spring 2010 more than 1,000\nU.S.\ntroops had been killed in Afghanistan, while the\nBritish\ntroops suffered some 300 deaths and the Canadians some 150. Both\nBritain\nand\nCanada\nstationed their troops in Afghanistan’s south, where fighting had been most intense. More than 20 other countries also lost troops during the war, though many—such as Germany and Italy—chose to focus their forces in the north and the west, where the insurgency was less potent. As the fighting dragged on and casualties escalated, the war lost popularity in many Western countries, creating domestic political pressure to keep troops out of harm’s way or to pull them out altogether.\nInitially, the war appeared to have been won with relative ease. On May 1, 2003, U.S. Secretary of Defense\nDonald Rumsfeld\nannounced an end to “major combat” in Afghanistan. On the same day, aboard the\naircraft carrier\nUSS\nAbraham Lincoln\n, President Bush announced that “major combat operations in Iraq have ended.” At that time, there were 8,000 U.S. troops in Afghanistan. The first democratic Afghan elections since the fall of the Taliban were held on October 9, 2004, with approximately 80 percent of registered voters turning out to give\nKarzai\na full five-year term as president. Parliamentary elections were staged a year later, with dozens of women claiming seats set aside for them to ensure gender\ndiversity\n. The 2004 constitution provided Afghanistan with a powerful central government and weak regional and local authorities—a structure that was in opposition to the country’s long-standing traditions.\nDespite vast powers under the constitution, Karzai was widely regarded as a weak leader who grew increasingly isolated as the war progressed. He survived several assassination attempts—including a September 2004 rocket attack that nearly struck a helicopter he was riding in—and security concerns kept him largely confined to the presidential palace in Kabul. Karzai’s government was beset by corruption, and efforts to build a national army and a police force were troubled from the start by\ninadequate\ninternational support and ethnic differences between Afghans.\nTaliban\nresurgence\nBeginning in 2005, violence climbed as the Taliban reasserted its presence with new tactics modeled on those being used by insurgents in Iraq. Whereas early in the war the Taliban had focused on battling U.S. and\nNATO\nforces in open combat—a strategy that largely failed to inflict significant damage—their adoption of the use of\nsuicide\nbombings and buried bombs, known as IEDs (\nimprovised explosive device\ns), began to cause heavy casualties. Between January 2005 and August 2006, Afghanistan endured 64 suicide attacks—a tactic that had been virtually unknown in the country’s history before then. At first the attacks caused relatively few casualties, but as training and the availability of high-powered explosives increased, the death toll began to climb: in one particularly vicious attack in November 2007, at least 70 people—many of them children—were killed as a parliamentary delegation visited the northern town of\nBaghlan\n. Less than a year later, a bombing at the\nIndian\nembassy in Kabul killed more than 50; the Afghan government accused elements of Pakistan’s intelligence service of complicity in the attack, a charge Pakistan denied.\nAfghanistan War\nU.S. special operations forces conducting a mounted combat patrol in search of Taliban fighters in Helmand province, Afghanistan, April 2007.\nThe Taliban’s resurgence corresponded with a rise in anti-American and anti-Western\nsentiment\namong Afghans. Those feelings were nurtured by the sluggish pace of reconstruction, allegations of prisoner abuse at U.S. detention facilities, widespread corruption in the Afghan government, and civilian casualties caused by U.S. and NATO bombings. In May 2006 a U.S. military vehicle crashed and killed several Afghans, an event that sparked violent anti-American riots in Kabul—the worst since the war began. Later that year NATO took command of the war across the country; American officials said that the United States would play a lesser role and that the face of the war would become increasingly international. This shift reflected the greater need for U.S. troops and resources in Iraq, where sectarian warfare was reaching alarming levels. By contrast, the war in Afghanistan was still regarded in Washington as a relative success.\nFor commanders on the ground in Afghanistan, however, it was apparent that the Taliban intended to\nescalate\nits campaign, launching more frequent attacks and intensifying its fund-raising from wealthy individuals and groups in the\nPersian Gulf\n. Another source of money was Afghanistan’s resurgent\nopium\nindustry. International pressure had forced the Taliban to curb\npoppy\ncultivation during their final year in power, but after their removal in 2001 the opium industry made a comeback, with revenues in some areas of the country benefiting the insurgency. Western-backed campaigns to eliminate poppy cultivation or to encourage farmers to grow other crops had little discernible impact; Afghanistan soon became the supplier of over 90 percent of the world’s opium.\nQuick Facts\nDate:\nDecember 2001 - 2014\nThe United States, meanwhile, had had only limited success in killing or capturing Taliban commanders. In early 2007, Mullah Obaidullah Akhund—the Taliban’s number three leader—was captured in Pakistan, and months later Mullah Dadullah—the Taliban’s top military commander—was killed in fighting with U.S. forces. But those were the exceptions. Top\ninsurgent\nleaders remained at large, many of them in the tribal regions of Pakistan that adjoin Afghanistan. This reality prompted the United States to begin targeting insurgent leaders who lived in\nPakistan\nwith missiles fired from\nremotely piloted drones\n. The\nCIA\nprogram of targeted killings was publicly denied by U.S. officials but was widely acknowledged in private. Pakistani officials in turn denounced the strikes in public but privately approved of them as long as civilian casualties were limited. The United States repeatedly threatened to expand its\ndrone\nstrikes beyond Pakistan’s tribal areas and into regions such as Balochistān if Pakistan did not demonstrate greater cooperation in battling the Taliban, a group it had long fostered.","attrs_markdown":"[![Encyclopedia Britannica](https:\/\/cdn.britannica.com\/mendel\/eb-logo\/MendelNewThistleLogo.png)](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/)\n\n[![Encyclopedia Britannica](https:\/\/cdn.britannica.com\/mendel\/eb-logo\/MendelNewThistleLogo.png)](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/)\n\n[SUBSCRIBE](https:\/\/premium.britannica.com\/premium-membership\/?utm_source=premium&utm_medium=global-nav&utm_campaign=blue-evergreen)\n\n[SUBSCRIBE](https:\/\/premium.britannica.com\/premium-membership\/?utm_source=premium&utm_medium=global-nav-mobile&utm_campaign=blue-evergreen)\n\nLogin\n\nhttps:\/\/premium.britannica.com\/premium-membership\/?utm\\_source=premium\\&utm\\_medium=nav-login-box\\&utm\\_campaign=evergreen\n\n[SUBSCRIBE](https:\/\/premium.britannica.com\/premium-membership\/?utm_source=premium&utm_medium=hamburger-menu&utm_campaign=blue)\n\n[Ask the Chatbot](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/chatbot)\n\n[Games & Quizzes](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/quiz\/browse) [History & Society](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/History-Society) [Science & Tech](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/Science-Tech) [Biographies](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/Biographies) [Animals & Nature](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/Animals-Nature) [Geography & Travel](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/Geography-Travel) [Arts & Culture](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/Arts-Culture) [ProCon](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/procon) [Money](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/money) [Videos](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/videos)\n\n[Afghanistan War](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/event\/Afghanistan-War)\n\n- [Introduction & Top Questions](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/event\/Afghanistan-War)\n- [Prelude to the September 11 attacks](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/event\/Afghanistan-War#ref292841)\n- [The September 11 attacks and the U.S.-British invasion](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/event\/Afghanistan-War#ref292842)\n- [Iraq takes center stage](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/event\/Afghanistan-War#ref292843)\n- [Taliban resurgence](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/event\/Afghanistan-War#ref292844)\n- [Obama and the U.S. troop surge](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/event\/Afghanistan-War\/Obama-and-the-U-S-troop-surge)\n- [The U.S. withdrawal and the return of the Taliban](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/event\/Afghanistan-War\/Obama-and-the-U-S-troop-surge#ref466715)\n- [Casualties](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/event\/Afghanistan-War\/Obama-and-the-U-S-troop-surge#ref466716)\n\n[References & Edit History](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/event\/Afghanistan-War\/additional-info)  [Quick Facts & Related Topics](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/facts\/Afghanistan-War)\n\n[Images & Videos](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/event\/Afghanistan-War\/images-videos)\n\n[![Afghanistan War](https:\/\/cdn.britannica.com\/26\/143126-004-23B19F78\/US-Army-soldiers-security-duty-province-Paktika-2010.jpg)](https:\/\/cdn.britannica.com\/26\/143126-050-3FAD2ADB\/US-Army-soldiers-security-duty-province-Paktika-2010.jpg)  [![Soviet invasion of Afghanistan](https:\/\/cdn.britannica.com\/79\/134279-004-B9100A73\/vehicle-Soviet-civilians-group-invasion-Afghanistan-December-1979.jpg)](https:\/\/cdn.britannica.com\/79\/134279-050-1B91C96F\/vehicle-Soviet-civilians-group-invasion-Afghanistan-December-1979.jpg)  [![Mohammad Omar](https:\/\/cdn.britannica.com\/67\/184667-004-D1B34C2C\/Mohammad-Omar.jpg)](https:\/\/cdn.britannica.com\/67\/184667-050-9762BCAC\/Mohammad-Omar.jpg)\n\n[![Remembering the 9\/11 attacks](https:\/\/cdn.britannica.com\/08\/224308-138-8A7E507D\/20th-anniversary-September-11-terrorism-attacks-United-States.jpg?w=400&h=225&c=crop)](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/video\/20th-anniversary-September-11-terrorism-attacks-United-States\/-258434)\n\n[![Afghanistan: U.S. Special Forces and Northern Alliance](https:\/\/cdn.britannica.com\/77\/125677-004-ED3B9E04\/US-Special-Forces-members-Northern-Alliance-Afghanistan-November-12-2001.jpg)](https:\/\/cdn.britannica.com\/77\/125677-050-B87B02F8\/US-Special-Forces-members-Northern-Alliance-Afghanistan-November-12-2001.jpg)  [![Kandahar, Afghanistan: Stephen Harper visiting troops](https:\/\/cdn.britannica.com\/45\/96945-004-2B728495\/Stephen-Harper-troops-base-Afgh-Kandahar-Canadian.jpg)](https:\/\/cdn.britannica.com\/45\/96945-050-94E34C4B\/Stephen-Harper-troops-base-Afgh-Kandahar-Canadian.jpg)  [![Iraq War: George W. Bush with sailors](https:\/\/cdn.britannica.com\/50\/115950-004-8C0682A6\/Pres-sailors-George-W-Bush-USS-Abraham-May-1-2003.jpg)](https:\/\/cdn.britannica.com\/50\/115950-050-2E4CC383\/Pres-sailors-George-W-Bush-USS-Abraham-May-1-2003.jpg)  [![Hamid Karzai](https:\/\/cdn.britannica.com\/33\/136433-004-C37DC1F8\/Hamid-Karzai-2004.jpg)](https:\/\/cdn.britannica.com\/33\/136433-050-A299184C\/Hamid-Karzai-2004.jpg)  [![Afghanistan War](https:\/\/cdn.britannica.com\/09\/187809-004-186A3F39\/operations-forces-search-combat-patrol-fighters-Taliban-April-2007.jpg)](https:\/\/cdn.britannica.com\/09\/187809-050-13C72062\/operations-forces-search-combat-patrol-fighters-Taliban-April-2007.jpg)  [![An Afghan policeman in uniform uses a stick to destroy white opium poppy plants in a large field in Afghanistan.](https:\/\/cdn.britannica.com\/44\/103744-004-0309DE2E\/policemen-Afghan-opium-poppies-eradication-sweep-Uruzgan-April-29.jpg)](https:\/\/cdn.britannica.com\/44\/103744-050-2BC50D3D\/policemen-Afghan-opium-poppies-eradication-sweep-Uruzgan-April-29.jpg)\n\nQuizzes\n\n[![Civil War era cannon overlooks Kennesaw Mountain National Battle. (military, artillery, American history)](https:\/\/cdn.britannica.com\/27\/273327-131-76BD5EF0\/civil-war-cannon-overlooks-keneesaw-mountain-national-battle.jpg?w=200&h=200&c=crop)](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/quiz\/pick-your-battles-quiz)\n\n[Pick Your Battles Quiz](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/quiz\/pick-your-battles-quiz)\n\n[![Louis IX of France (St. Louis), stained glass window of Louis IX during the Crusades. (Unknown location.)](https:\/\/cdn.britannica.com\/69\/159669-131-A73FA5E9\/Louis-IX-stained-glass-window-France-Crusades.jpg?w=200&h=200&c=crop)](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/quiz\/world-wars)\n\n[World Wars](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/quiz\/world-wars)\n\n[![D-Day. American soldiers fire rifles, throw grenades and wade ashore on Omaha Beach next to a German bunker during D Day landing. 1 of 5 Allied beachheads est. in Normandy, France. The Normandy Invasion of World War II launched June 6, 1944.](https:\/\/cdn.britannica.com\/45\/171645-131-FB9DD0D9\/D-Day-soldiers-American-rifles-grenades-beachheads-bunker-June-6-1944.jpg?w=200&h=200&c=crop)](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/quiz\/a-history-of-war)\n\n[A History of War](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/quiz\/a-history-of-war)\n\n![Britannica AI Icon](https:\/\/cdn.britannica.com\/mendel-resources\/3-178\/images\/chatbot\/star-ai.svg?v=3.178.5)\n\nAsk Anything\n\nQuick Summary\n\n[World History](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/browse\/World-History)    [Wars, Battles & Armed Conflicts](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/browse\/Wars-Battles-Conflicts)\n\nCITE\n\nShare\n\nFeedback\n\nExternal Websites\n\n[![Afghanistan War](https:\/\/cdn.britannica.com\/26\/143126-050-3FAD2ADB\/US-Army-soldiers-security-duty-province-Paktika-2010.jpg?w=400&h=300&c=crop)](https:\/\/cdn.britannica.com\/26\/143126-050-3FAD2ADB\/US-Army-soldiers-security-duty-province-Paktika-2010.jpg)\n\n[Afghanistan War](https:\/\/cdn.britannica.com\/26\/143126-050-3FAD2ADB\/US-Army-soldiers-security-duty-province-Paktika-2010.jpg) U.S. Army soldiers on security duty in Paktīkā province, Afghanistan, 2010.\n\n(more)\n\n# Afghanistan War\n2001–2014\n\nHomework Help\n\nWritten by\n\n[Griff Witte London bureau chief, *Washington Post*.](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/contributor\/Griff-Witte\/7832094)\n\nGriff Witte\n\nFact-checked by\n\n[Britannica Editors Encyclopaedia Britannica's editors oversee subject areas in which they have extensive knowledge, whether from years of experience gained by working on that content or via study for an advanced degree....](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/editor\/The-Editors-of-Encyclopaedia-Britannica\/4419)\n\nBritannica Editors\n\nLast updated\n\nApr. 7, 2026\n\n•[History](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/event\/Afghanistan-War\/additional-info#history)\n\n![Britannica AI Icon](https:\/\/cdn.britannica.com\/mendel-resources\/3-178\/images\/chatbot\/star-ai.svg?v=3.178.5) Britannica AI\n\nAsk Anything\n\nQuick Summary\n\nTable of Contents\n\nTable of Contents\n\nQuick Summary\n\nAsk Anything\n\nTop Questions\n\n### What was the cause of the Afghanistan War?\nThe cause of the Afghanistan War was the [September 11 attacks](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/event\/September-11-attacks). U.S. and NATO forces responded to the attacks by invading Afghanistan in an attempt to oust the Taliban and dismantle al-Qaeda.\n\n### What were the three phases of the Afghanistan War?\nThe three phases were: toppling the Taliban (2001), defeating the Taliban militarily and rebuilding Afghan institutions (2002-08), and implementing a counterinsurgency strategy with increased U.S. troops (2008-14).\n\n### What was the outcome of the U.S. troop surge in Afghanistan under Obama?\nThe troop surge led to an increase in U.S. combat deaths and a temporary escalation in the war effort, but ultimately failed to achieve lasting peace or stability in Afghanistan.\n\n### How many NATO troops were killed during the Afghanistan War?\n3,486 NATO troops were killed by the end of major combat operations in December 2014.\n\n### What was the impact of the Afghanistan War on civilians?\nAt least 47,000 Afghan civilians were killed, tens of thousands died from indirect causes, and millions were displaced internally or fled to neighboring countries.\n\n## News •\n[Former Australian soldier charged with committing 5 war crime murders in Afghanistan](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/news\/1686268\/b428075a9980783863a8bcb7c70fb989)  • Apr. 7, 2026, 6:20 AM ET (AP)\n\nShow less\n\n**Afghanistan War**, international conflict in [Afghanistan](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/place\/Afghanistan) beginning in 2001 that was triggered by the [September 11 attacks](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/event\/September-11-attacks) and consisted of three phases. The first phase—toppling the [Taliban](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/topic\/Taliban) (the ultraconservative political and religious faction that ruled Afghanistan and provided sanctuary for [al-Qaeda](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/topic\/al-Qaeda), perpetrators of the September 11 attacks)—was brief, lasting just two months. The second phase, from 2002 until 2008, was marked by a [U.S.](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/topic\/history-of-United-States) strategy of defeating the Taliban militarily and rebuilding core institutions of the [Afghan](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/topic\/Pashtun) state. The third phase, a turn to classic counterinsurgency doctrine, began in 2008 and accelerated with U.S. Pres. [Barack Obama](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/biography\/Barack-Obama)’s 2009 decision to temporarily increase the U.S. troop presence in Afghanistan. The larger force was used to [implement](https:\/\/www.merriam-webster.com\/dictionary\/implement) a strategy of protecting the population from Taliban attacks and supporting efforts to reintegrate insurgents into Afghan society. The strategy came coupled with a timetable for the withdrawal of the foreign forces from Afghanistan; beginning in 2011, security responsibilities would be gradually handed over to the Afghan military and police. The new approach largely failed to achieve its aims. Insurgent attacks and civilian casualties remained stubbornly high, while many of the Afghan military and police units taking over security duties appeared to be ill-prepared to hold off the Taliban. By the time the U.S. and [NATO](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/topic\/North-Atlantic-Treaty-Organization) combat mission formally ended in December 2014, the 13-year Afghanistan War had become the longest [war](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/topic\/war) ever fought by the [United States](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/place\/United-States). American military [casualties](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/dictionary\/casualties) included some 2,400 service members killed and some 20,700 others wounded.\n\n## Prelude to the September 11 attacks\n[![Soviet invasion of Afghanistan](https:\/\/cdn.britannica.com\/79\/134279-050-1B91C96F\/vehicle-Soviet-civilians-group-invasion-Afghanistan-December-1979.jpg?w=300)](https:\/\/cdn.britannica.com\/79\/134279-050-1B91C96F\/vehicle-Soviet-civilians-group-invasion-Afghanistan-December-1979.jpg)\n\n[Soviet invasion of Afghanistan](https:\/\/cdn.britannica.com\/79\/134279-050-1B91C96F\/vehicle-Soviet-civilians-group-invasion-Afghanistan-December-1979.jpg)A Soviet armoured vehicle rolling past a group of civilians during the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan, December 1979.\n\n(more)\n\nThe joint U.S. and [British](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/topic\/history-of-United-Kingdom) invasion of Afghanistan in late 2001 was preceded by over two decades of war in Afghanistan (*see* [Afghan War](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/event\/Afghan-War)). On December 24, 1979, Soviet tanks rumbled across the [Amu Darya](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/place\/Amu-Darya) River and into Afghanistan, ostensibly to restore stability following a coup that brought to power a pair of Marxist-Leninist political groups—the People’s (Khalq) Party and the Banner (Parcham) Party. But the Soviet presence touched off a nationwide rebellion by fighters—known as the [mujahideen](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/topic\/mujahideen-Afghani-rebels)—who drew upon [Islam](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/topic\/Islam) as a uniting source of inspiration. These fighters won extensive covert backing from [Pakistan](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/place\/Pakistan), [Saudi Arabia](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/place\/Saudi-Arabia), and the United States and were joined in their fight by foreign volunteers (who soon formed a network, known as [al-Qaeda](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/topic\/al-Qaeda), to coordinate their efforts). The [guerrilla war](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/topic\/guerrilla-warfare) against the Soviet forces led to their departure in 1989. In the Soviets’ absence, the [mujahideen](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/topic\/mujahideen-Islam) ousted Afghanistan’s Soviet-backed government and established a transitional government.\n\nThe mujahideen were politically fragmented, however, and in 1994 armed conflict [escalated](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/dictionary\/escalated). The Taliban emerged and in 1996 seized [Kabul](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/place\/Kabul). It instituted a severe interpretation of [Islamic law](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/topic\/sharia) that, for example, forbade female education and prescribed the severing of hands, or even [execution](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/topic\/capital-punishment), as punishment for petty crimes. That same year, [al-Qaeda](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/topic\/al-Qaeda) leader [Osama bin Laden](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/biography\/Osama-bin-Laden) was welcomed to Afghanistan (having been expelled from Sudan) and established his organization’s headquarters there. With al-Qaeda’s help, the Taliban won control of over 90 percent of Afghan territory by the summer of 2001. On September 9 of that year, al-Qaeda hit men carried out the assassination of famed mujahideen leader Ahmad Shah Masoud, who at the time was leading the [Northern Alliance](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/topic\/Northern-Alliance) (a loose coalition of mujahideen militias that maintained control of a small section of northern Afghanistan) as it battled the Taliban and who had unsuccessfully sought greater U.S. backing for his efforts.\n\n## The September 11 attacks and the [U.S.](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/topic\/history-of-United-States)\\-[British](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/topic\/history-of-United-Kingdom) invasion\n[![Mohammad Omar](https:\/\/cdn.britannica.com\/67\/184667-050-9762BCAC\/Mohammad-Omar.jpg?w=300)](https:\/\/cdn.britannica.com\/67\/184667-050-9762BCAC\/Mohammad-Omar.jpg)\n\n[Mohammad Omar](https:\/\/cdn.britannica.com\/67\/184667-050-9762BCAC\/Mohammad-Omar.jpg)\n\n(more)\n\nThe hijacking and crashing of four U.S. jetliners on September 11, 2001, brought instant attention to Afghanistan. The plot had been hatched by al-Qaeda, and some of the 19 hijackers had trained in Afghanistan. In the aftermath of the attacks, the administration of U.S. Pres. [George W. Bush](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/biography\/George-W-Bush) coalesced around a strategy of first ousting the Taliban from Afghanistan and dismantling al-Qaeda, though others contemplated actions in [Iraq](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/place\/Iraq), including long-standing plans for toppling Pres. [Saddam Hussein](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/biography\/Saddam-Hussein). Bush demanded that Taliban leader Mullah [Mohammed Omar](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/biography\/Mohammad-Omar) “deliver to \\[the\\] United States authorities all the leaders of al-Qaeda who hide in your land,” and when Omar refused, U.S. officials began [implementing](https:\/\/www.merriam-webster.com\/dictionary\/implementing) a plan for war.\n\n[![Remembering the 9\/11 attacks](https:\/\/cdn.britannica.com\/08\/224308-138-8A7E507D\/20th-anniversary-September-11-terrorism-attacks-United-States.jpg?w=800&h=450&c=crop)](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/video\/20th-anniversary-September-11-terrorism-attacks-United-States\/-258434)\n\nRemembering the 9\/11 attacksLearn more about how the September 11 attacks were remembered in 2021.\n\n(more)\n\n[See all videos for this article](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/event\/Afghanistan-War\/images-videos)\n\nThe campaign in Afghanistan started covertly on September 26, with a [Central Intelligence Agency](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/topic\/Central-Intelligence-Agency) (CIA) team known as Jawbreaker arriving in the country and, working with anti-Taliban allies, initiating a strategy for overthrowing the regime. U.S. officials hoped that by partnering with the Afghans they could avoid [deploying](https:\/\/www.merriam-webster.com\/dictionary\/deploying) a large force to Afghanistan. Pentagon officials were especially concerned that the United States not be drawn into a protracted occupation of Afghanistan, as had occurred with the Soviets more than two decades prior. The United States relied primarily on the [Northern Alliance](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/topic\/Northern-Alliance), which had just lost Massoud but had regrouped under other commanders, including [Tajik](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/topic\/Tajik-people) leader Mohammed Fahim and Abdul Rashid Dostum, an [Uzbek](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/topic\/Uzbek-people). The Americans also teamed with anti-Taliban [Pashtuns](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/topic\/Pashtun) in southern Afghanistan, including a little-known tribal leader named [Hamid Karzai](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/biography\/Hamid-Karzai).\n\n[![Civil War era cannon overlooks Kennesaw Mountain National Battle. (military, artillery, American history)](https:\/\/cdn.britannica.com\/27\/273327-131-76BD5EF0\/civil-war-cannon-overlooks-keneesaw-mountain-national-battle.jpg) Britannica Quiz Pick Your Battles Quiz](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/quiz\/pick-your-battles-quiz)\n\n[![Afghanistan: U.S. Special Forces and Northern Alliance](https:\/\/cdn.britannica.com\/77\/125677-050-B87B02F8\/US-Special-Forces-members-Northern-Alliance-Afghanistan-November-12-2001.jpg?w=300)](https:\/\/cdn.britannica.com\/77\/125677-050-B87B02F8\/US-Special-Forces-members-Northern-Alliance-Afghanistan-November-12-2001.jpg)\n\n[Afghanistan: U.S. Special Forces and Northern Alliance](https:\/\/cdn.britannica.com\/77\/125677-050-B87B02F8\/US-Special-Forces-members-Northern-Alliance-Afghanistan-November-12-2001.jpg)U.S. Special Forces working with members of the Northern Alliance in Afghanistan, November 12, 2001.\n\n(more)\n\nThe CIA team was soon joined by U.S. and British special forces [contingents](https:\/\/www.merriam-webster.com\/dictionary\/contingents), and together they provided arms, equipment, and advice to the Afghans. They also helped coordinate targeting for the air campaign, which began on October 7, 2001, with U.S. and British war planes pounding Taliban targets, thus marking the public start of Operation Enduring Freedom. In late October, [Northern Alliance](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/topic\/Northern-Alliance) forces began to overtake a series of towns formerly held by the Taliban. The forces worked with U.S. assistance, but they defied U.S. wishes when, on November 13, they marched into Kabul as the Taliban retreated without a fight.\n\n[Kandahar](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/place\/Kandahar), the largest city in southern Afghanistan and the Taliban’s spiritual home, fell on December 6, marking the end of Taliban power. It had been besieged by a force led by Karzai that moved in from the north and one commanded by Gul Agha Sherzai that advanced from the south; both operated with heavy assistance from the [United States](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/place\/United-States). As the Taliban leadership retreated into Afghanistan’s rural areas and across the border to [Pakistan](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/place\/Pakistan), anti-Taliban figures [convened](https:\/\/www.merriam-webster.com\/dictionary\/convened) at a [United Nations](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/topic\/United-Nations) (UN)-sponsored conference in Bonn, [Germany](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/place\/Germany). With behind-the-scenes maneuvering by the United States, [Karzai](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/biography\/Hamid-Karzai) was selected to lead the country on an [interim](https:\/\/www.merriam-webster.com\/dictionary\/interim) basis.\n\nExplore Britannica Premium\\!\n\nGo beyond the basics with trusted, in-depth knowledge for professionals, students, and lifelong learners.\n\n[SUBSCRIBE](https:\/\/premium.britannica.com\/premium-membership\/?utm_source=premium&utm_medium=inline-cta&utm_campaign=basics-2026)\n\n![Penguin, ship, mountain, atlas](https:\/\/cdn.britannica.com\/marketing\/inline-left.webp)\n\n![shohei ohtani, plants, andy wharhol art](https:\/\/cdn.britannica.com\/marketing\/inline-right.webp)\n\n![Mobile](https:\/\/cdn.britannica.com\/marketing\/inline-mobile.webp?w=400)\n\nAn intensive manhunt for Omar, [bin Laden](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/biography\/Osama-bin-Laden), and al-Qaeda deputy chief [Ayman al-Zawahiri](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/biography\/Ayman-al-Zawahiri) was undertaken. Prior to the killing of bin Laden by U.S. forces in 2011 (*see below*), the Americans were believed to have come closest to bin Laden in the December 2001 battle of Tora Bora (bin Laden’s mountain stronghold). But bin Laden was thought to have managed to have slipped into Pakistan with the help of Afghan and Pakistani forces that were supposedly helping the Americans. Critics later questioned why the U.S. military had allowed Afghan forces to lead the assault on the cave complex at Tora Bora rather than doing it themselves. (Indeed, Democratic presidential candidate Sen. [John Kerry](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/biography\/John-Kerry) made this [criticism](https:\/\/www.merriam-webster.com\/dictionary\/criticism) repeatedly during the 2004 general election campaign.) [Al-Qaeda](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/topic\/al-Qaeda) subsequently reestablished its base of operations in the tribal areas that form Pakistan’s northwest border with Afghanistan. Omar and his top Taliban lieutenants settled in and around the Pakistani city of [Quetta](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/place\/Quetta-Pakistan), in the remote southwestern province of [Balochistān](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/place\/Balochistan). One of the final major battles of the first phase of the war came in March 2002 with Operation Anaconda in the eastern province of Paktia, which involved U.S. and Afghan forces fighting some 800 al-Qaeda and Taliban militants. The operation also marked the entrance of other countries’ troops into the war: [special operations forces](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/topic\/special-operations-warfare) from [Australia](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/place\/Australia), Canada, [Denmark](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/place\/Denmark), [France](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/place\/France), Germany, and [Norway](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/place\/Norway) participated.\n\n## Iraq takes center stage\nWith the ouster of the Taliban and al-Qaeda, the international focus shifted to reconstruction and nation-building efforts in Afghanistan. In April 2002 Bush announced a “[Marshall Plan](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/event\/Marshall-Plan)” for Afghanistan in a speech at the [Virginia Military Institute](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/topic\/Virginia-Military-Institute), promising substantial financial assistance. But from the start, development efforts in Afghanistan were inadequately funded, as attention had turned among U.S. officials to the looming [confrontation](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/dictionary\/confrontation) in Iraq. Between 2001 and 2009, just over \\$38 billion in humanitarian and reconstruction assistance to Afghanistan was appropriated by the U.S. Congress. More than half the money went to training and equipping Afghan security forces, and the remainder represented a fraction of the amount that experts said would be required to develop a country that had consistently ranked near the bottom of global [human development](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/science\/human-development) indices. The aid program was also bedeviled by waste and by confusion over whether civilian or military authorities had responsibility for leading education, health, agriculture, and other development projects.\n\nDespite military commitments from dozens of U.S. allies, the United States initially argued against allowing the other foreign forces—operating as the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF)—to [deploy](https:\/\/www.merriam-webster.com\/dictionary\/deploy) beyond the Kabul area. That choice was directed by the [Pentagon](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/topic\/Pentagon), which insisted on a “light footprint” out of concern that Afghanistan would become a drag on U.S. resources as attention shifted to Iraq (*see* [Iraq War](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/event\/Iraq-War)). When ISAF did begin to venture beyond Kabul, its efforts were hampered by the “caveats” of its component countries—restrictions that kept all but a handful of the militaries from actively engaging in the fight against the Taliban and al-Qaeda. The force, overseen by the [North Atlantic Treaty Organization](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/topic\/North-Atlantic-Treaty-Organization) (NATO) in the organization’s first mission outside Europe, was also hamstrung by a lack of troops as international commitments to Afghanistan flagged.\n\n[![Kandahar, Afghanistan: Stephen Harper visiting troops](https:\/\/cdn.britannica.com\/45\/96945-050-94E34C4B\/Stephen-Harper-troops-base-Afgh-Kandahar-Canadian.jpg?w=300)](https:\/\/cdn.britannica.com\/45\/96945-050-94E34C4B\/Stephen-Harper-troops-base-Afgh-Kandahar-Canadian.jpg)\n\n[Kandahar, Afghanistan: Stephen Harper visiting troops](https:\/\/cdn.britannica.com\/45\/96945-050-94E34C4B\/Stephen-Harper-troops-base-Afgh-Kandahar-Canadian.jpg)Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper addressing Canadian soldiers at their base in Kandahar, Afghanistan, March 2006.\n\n(more)\n\nThe [United States](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/topic\/history-of-United-States) consistently represented the largest foreign force in Afghanistan, and it [bore](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/dictionary\/bore) the heaviest losses. By spring 2010 more than 1,000 [U.S.](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/topic\/history-of-United-States) troops had been killed in Afghanistan, while the [British](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/topic\/history-of-United-Kingdom) troops suffered some 300 deaths and the Canadians some 150. Both [Britain](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/place\/United-Kingdom) and [Canada](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/place\/Canada) stationed their troops in Afghanistan’s south, where fighting had been most intense. More than 20 other countries also lost troops during the war, though many—such as Germany and Italy—chose to focus their forces in the north and the west, where the insurgency was less potent. As the fighting dragged on and casualties escalated, the war lost popularity in many Western countries, creating domestic political pressure to keep troops out of harm’s way or to pull them out altogether.\n\n[![Iraq War: George W. Bush with sailors](https:\/\/cdn.britannica.com\/50\/115950-050-2E4CC383\/Pres-sailors-George-W-Bush-USS-Abraham-May-1-2003.jpg?w=300)](https:\/\/cdn.britannica.com\/50\/115950-050-2E4CC383\/Pres-sailors-George-W-Bush-USS-Abraham-May-1-2003.jpg)\n\n[Iraq War: George W. Bush with sailors](https:\/\/cdn.britannica.com\/50\/115950-050-2E4CC383\/Pres-sailors-George-W-Bush-USS-Abraham-May-1-2003.jpg)Pres. George W. Bush with sailors aboard the USS *Abraham Lincoln*, May 1, 2003.\n\n(more)\n\nInitially, the war appeared to have been won with relative ease. On May 1, 2003, U.S. Secretary of Defense [Donald Rumsfeld](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/biography\/Donald-Rumsfeld) announced an end to “major combat” in Afghanistan. On the same day, aboard the [aircraft carrier](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/technology\/aircraft-carrier) USS *Abraham Lincoln*, President Bush announced that “major combat operations in Iraq have ended.” At that time, there were 8,000 U.S. troops in Afghanistan. The first democratic Afghan elections since the fall of the Taliban were held on October 9, 2004, with approximately 80 percent of registered voters turning out to give [Karzai](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/biography\/Hamid-Karzai) a full five-year term as president. Parliamentary elections were staged a year later, with dozens of women claiming seats set aside for them to ensure gender [diversity](https:\/\/www.merriam-webster.com\/dictionary\/diversity). The 2004 constitution provided Afghanistan with a powerful central government and weak regional and local authorities—a structure that was in opposition to the country’s long-standing traditions.\n\n[![Hamid Karzai](https:\/\/cdn.britannica.com\/33\/136433-050-A299184C\/Hamid-Karzai-2004.jpg?w=300)](https:\/\/cdn.britannica.com\/33\/136433-050-A299184C\/Hamid-Karzai-2004.jpg)\n\n[Hamid Karzai](https:\/\/cdn.britannica.com\/33\/136433-050-A299184C\/Hamid-Karzai-2004.jpg)Hamid Karzai, 2004.\n\n(more)\n\nDespite vast powers under the constitution, Karzai was widely regarded as a weak leader who grew increasingly isolated as the war progressed. He survived several assassination attempts—including a September 2004 rocket attack that nearly struck a helicopter he was riding in—and security concerns kept him largely confined to the presidential palace in Kabul. Karzai’s government was beset by corruption, and efforts to build a national army and a police force were troubled from the start by [inadequate](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/dictionary\/inadequate) international support and ethnic differences between Afghans.\n\n## [Taliban](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/topic\/Taliban) resurgence\nBeginning in 2005, violence climbed as the Taliban reasserted its presence with new tactics modeled on those being used by insurgents in Iraq. Whereas early in the war the Taliban had focused on battling U.S. and [NATO](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/topic\/North-Atlantic-Treaty-Organization) forces in open combat—a strategy that largely failed to inflict significant damage—their adoption of the use of [suicide](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/topic\/suicide) bombings and buried bombs, known as IEDs ([improvised explosive device](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/technology\/improvised-explosive-device)s), began to cause heavy casualties. Between January 2005 and August 2006, Afghanistan endured 64 suicide attacks—a tactic that had been virtually unknown in the country’s history before then. At first the attacks caused relatively few casualties, but as training and the availability of high-powered explosives increased, the death toll began to climb: in one particularly vicious attack in November 2007, at least 70 people—many of them children—were killed as a parliamentary delegation visited the northern town of [Baghlan](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/place\/Baghlan). Less than a year later, a bombing at the [Indian](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/topic\/Indigenous-peoples-of-the-Americas) embassy in Kabul killed more than 50; the Afghan government accused elements of Pakistan’s intelligence service of complicity in the attack, a charge Pakistan denied.\n\n[![Afghanistan War](https:\/\/cdn.britannica.com\/09\/187809-050-13C72062\/operations-forces-search-combat-patrol-fighters-Taliban-April-2007.jpg?w=300)](https:\/\/cdn.britannica.com\/09\/187809-050-13C72062\/operations-forces-search-combat-patrol-fighters-Taliban-April-2007.jpg)\n\n[Afghanistan War](https:\/\/cdn.britannica.com\/09\/187809-050-13C72062\/operations-forces-search-combat-patrol-fighters-Taliban-April-2007.jpg)U.S. special operations forces conducting a mounted combat patrol in search of Taliban fighters in Helmand province, Afghanistan, April 2007.\n\n(more)\n\nThe Taliban’s resurgence corresponded with a rise in anti-American and anti-Western [sentiment](https:\/\/www.merriam-webster.com\/dictionary\/sentiment) among Afghans. Those feelings were nurtured by the sluggish pace of reconstruction, allegations of prisoner abuse at U.S. detention facilities, widespread corruption in the Afghan government, and civilian casualties caused by U.S. and NATO bombings. In May 2006 a U.S. military vehicle crashed and killed several Afghans, an event that sparked violent anti-American riots in Kabul—the worst since the war began. Later that year NATO took command of the war across the country; American officials said that the United States would play a lesser role and that the face of the war would become increasingly international. This shift reflected the greater need for U.S. troops and resources in Iraq, where sectarian warfare was reaching alarming levels. By contrast, the war in Afghanistan was still regarded in Washington as a relative success.\n\n[![Helmand province, Afghanistan: eradication sweep of opium poppies](https:\/\/cdn.britannica.com\/44\/103744-050-2BC50D3D\/policemen-Afghan-opium-poppies-eradication-sweep-Uruzgan-April-29.jpg?w=300)](https:\/\/cdn.britannica.com\/44\/103744-050-2BC50D3D\/policemen-Afghan-opium-poppies-eradication-sweep-Uruzgan-April-29.jpg)\n\n[Helmand province, Afghanistan: eradication sweep of opium poppies](https:\/\/cdn.britannica.com\/44\/103744-050-2BC50D3D\/policemen-Afghan-opium-poppies-eradication-sweep-Uruzgan-April-29.jpg)Afghan policemen destroying opium poppies during an eradication sweep in Helmand province, 2013.\n\n(more)\n\nFor commanders on the ground in Afghanistan, however, it was apparent that the Taliban intended to [escalate](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/dictionary\/escalate) its campaign, launching more frequent attacks and intensifying its fund-raising from wealthy individuals and groups in the [Persian Gulf](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/place\/Persian-Gulf). Another source of money was Afghanistan’s resurgent [opium](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/science\/opium) industry. International pressure had forced the Taliban to curb [poppy](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/plant\/poppy) cultivation during their final year in power, but after their removal in 2001 the opium industry made a comeback, with revenues in some areas of the country benefiting the insurgency. Western-backed campaigns to eliminate poppy cultivation or to encourage farmers to grow other crops had little discernible impact; Afghanistan soon became the supplier of over 90 percent of the world’s opium.\n\nQuick Facts\n\nDate:\n\nDecember 2001 - 2014\n\n*(Show more)*\n\nParticipants:\n\n[Afghanistan](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/place\/Afghanistan)\n\n[United States](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/place\/United-States)\n\n[al-Qaeda](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/topic\/al-Qaeda)\n\n[Taliban](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/topic\/Taliban)\n\n*(Show more)*\n\nContext:\n\n[September 11 attacks](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/event\/September-11-attacks)\n\n*(Show more)*\n\nMajor Events:\n\n[Battle of Tora Bora](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/event\/Battle-of-Tora-Bora)\n\n*(Show more)*\n\nKey People:\n\n[George W. Bush](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/biography\/George-W-Bush)\n\n[Hamid Karzai](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/biography\/Hamid-Karzai)\n\n[Barack Obama](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/biography\/Barack-Obama)\n\n[Robert M. Gates](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/biography\/Robert-M-Gates)\n\n[David Petraeus](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/biography\/David-Petraeus)\n\n*(Show more)*\n\nOn the Web:\n\n[Council on Foreign Relations - The U.S. War in Afghanistan](https:\/\/www.cfr.org\/timelines\/us-war-afghanistan) (Mar. 20, 2026)\n\n*(Show more)*\n\n[See all related content](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/facts\/Afghanistan-War)\n\nShow More\n\nThe United States, meanwhile, had had only limited success in killing or capturing Taliban commanders. In early 2007, Mullah Obaidullah Akhund—the Taliban’s number three leader—was captured in Pakistan, and months later Mullah Dadullah—the Taliban’s top military commander—was killed in fighting with U.S. forces. But those were the exceptions. Top [insurgent](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/dictionary\/insurgent) leaders remained at large, many of them in the tribal regions of Pakistan that adjoin Afghanistan. This reality prompted the United States to begin targeting insurgent leaders who lived in [Pakistan](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/topic\/history-of-Pakistan) with missiles fired from [remotely piloted drones](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/technology\/unmanned-aerial-vehicle). The [CIA](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/topic\/Central-Intelligence-Agency) program of targeted killings was publicly denied by U.S. officials but was widely acknowledged in private. Pakistani officials in turn denounced the strikes in public but privately approved of them as long as civilian casualties were limited. The United States repeatedly threatened to expand its [drone](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/dictionary\/drone) strikes beyond Pakistan’s tribal areas and into regions such as Balochistān if Pakistan did not demonstrate greater cooperation in battling the Taliban, a group it had long fostered.\n\n![Britannica AI Icon](https:\/\/cdn.britannica.com\/mendel-resources\/3-178\/images\/chatbot\/star-ai.svg?v=3.178.5)Britannica AI\n\n*chevron\\_right*\n\nAfghanistan War\n\n*close*\n\n[AI-generated answers](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/about-britannica-ai) from Britannica articles. AI makes mistakes, so verify using Britannica articles.\n\n# Obama and the U.S. troop surge\n[![Barack Obama, Hamid Karzai, and Asif Ali Zardari](https:\/\/cdn.britannica.com\/01\/131001-050-FA1C19E2\/Pres-Barack-Obama-Hamid-Karzai-White-House-May-2009.jpg?w=300)1 of 2](https:\/\/cdn.britannica.com\/01\/131001-050-FA1C19E2\/Pres-Barack-Obama-Hamid-Karzai-White-House-May-2009.jpg)\n\n[Barack Obama, Hamid Karzai, and Asif Ali Zardari](https:\/\/cdn.britannica.com\/01\/131001-050-FA1C19E2\/Pres-Barack-Obama-Hamid-Karzai-White-House-May-2009.jpg)U.S. Pres. Barack Obama meeting at the White House with Pres. Hamid Karzai of Afghanistan and Pres. Asif Ali Zardari of Pakistan, May 2009.\n\n(more)\n\n[![Afghanistan War](https:\/\/cdn.britannica.com\/11\/131011-050-1FC0B531\/man-Afghan-bicycle-security-patrol-dirt-road-2009.jpg?w=300)2 of 2](https:\/\/cdn.britannica.com\/11\/131011-050-1FC0B531\/man-Afghan-bicycle-security-patrol-dirt-road-2009.jpg)\n\n[Afghanistan War](https:\/\/cdn.britannica.com\/11\/131011-050-1FC0B531\/man-Afghan-bicycle-security-patrol-dirt-road-2009.jpg)An Afghan man riding a bicycle on a dirt road during a security patrol by U.S. Marines and Afghan soldiers in Helmand province, Afghanistan, 2009.\n\n(more)\n\nU.S. Pres. [Barack Obama](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/biography\/Barack-Obama) went to the [White House](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/topic\/White-House-Washington-DC) promising to focus attention and resources on the faltering [war](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/topic\/war) effort in [Afghanistan](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/place\/Afghanistan). On February 17, 2009, he approved sending an additional 17,000 U.S. troops, on top of the 36,000 U.S. troops and 32,000 [NATO](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/topic\/North-Atlantic-Treaty-Organization) service members already there. Three months later Obama took the rare step of removing a commanding general from a theatre of war, replacing Gen. David McKiernan with Gen. [Stanley McChrystal](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/biography\/Stanley-McChrystal). While McKiernan was shifting U.S. strategy in Afghanistan, Obama and other top officials had concluded that a more radical change was needed. McChrystal was brought in to [implement](https:\/\/www.merriam-webster.com\/dictionary\/implement) a new strategy modeled after the surge strategy in Iraq—one in which U.S. forces would focus on protecting the population from insurgents rather than simply trying to kill large numbers of militants. The strategy also involved trying to persuade enemy fighters to defect and ultimately encouraging reconciliation between the Karzai government and [Taliban](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/topic\/Taliban) leaders.\n\n[![Stanley McChrystal and Barack Obama](https:\/\/cdn.britannica.com\/69\/142169-050-861F0550\/Stanley-McChrystal-Pres-Barack-Obama-2009.jpg?w=300)1 of 2](https:\/\/cdn.britannica.com\/69\/142169-050-861F0550\/Stanley-McChrystal-Pres-Barack-Obama-2009.jpg)\n\n[Stanley McChrystal and Barack Obama](https:\/\/cdn.britannica.com\/69\/142169-050-861F0550\/Stanley-McChrystal-Pres-Barack-Obama-2009.jpg)Stanley McChrystal (right) and U.S. Pres. Barack Obama, 2009.\n\n(more)\n\n[![Afghanistan War](https:\/\/cdn.britannica.com\/16\/131016-050-DC8183AF\/soldier-hills-air-strike-Barge-Matal-Afghanistan-July-2009.jpg?w=300)2 of 2](https:\/\/cdn.britannica.com\/16\/131016-050-DC8183AF\/soldier-hills-air-strike-Barge-Matal-Afghanistan-July-2009.jpg)\n\n[Afghanistan War](https:\/\/cdn.britannica.com\/16\/131016-050-DC8183AF\/soldier-hills-air-strike-Barge-Matal-Afghanistan-July-2009.jpg)A U.S. soldier calling for an air strike on the hills surrounding Barge Matal in eastern Nūristān province, Afghanistan, July 2009.\n\n(more)\n\nSoon after assuming command, McChrystal concluded that he did not have enough troops to execute the new strategy, and in September 2009 he laid out his concerns in a [confidential](https:\/\/www.merriam-webster.com\/dictionary\/confidential) report, which was subsequently leaked to the press. McChrystal predicted that the war would be lost within a year if there was not a significant troop surge. After an intensive [Afghan](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/topic\/Pashtun) policy review—the second one by the Obama administration in less than a year—the president delivered a speech at the U.S. Military Academy at West Point on December 1 in which he announced a major escalation in the war effort, with 30,000 additional troops being [deployed](https:\/\/www.merriam-webster.com\/dictionary\/deployed) to Afghanistan by the summer of 2010. The new strategy led to an increase in U.S. combat deaths; notably, during the first three months of 2010, U.S. deaths were approximately twice what they had been over the same period in 2009.\n\nThe surge in U.S. forces was accompanied by a dramatic escalation of U.S. [drone](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/art\/drone-music) strikes in Pakistan—one of which killed [Pakistani Taliban](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/topic\/Pakistani-Taliban) leader Baitullah Mehsud. But the [CIA](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/topic\/Central-Intelligence-Agency) also paid a price in late December 2009 when an [al-Qaeda](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/topic\/al-Qaeda) double agent detonated a [suicide bomb](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/topic\/suicide-bombing) at a Bagram air base in the eastern province of Khost, killing seven from the agency.\n\n[![Afghanistan War](https:\/\/cdn.britannica.com\/27\/143127-050-4F23768B\/officer-patrol-Afghan-National-Police-troops-Afghanistan-2010.jpg?w=300)](https:\/\/cdn.britannica.com\/27\/143127-050-4F23768B\/officer-patrol-Afghan-National-Police-troops-Afghanistan-2010.jpg)\n\n[Afghanistan War](https:\/\/cdn.britannica.com\/27\/143127-050-4F23768B\/officer-patrol-Afghan-National-Police-troops-Afghanistan-2010.jpg)An Afghan National Police officer leading U.S. troops on a patrol in Khost province, Afghanistan, 2010.\n\n(more)\n\nIn early 2010 the surge began with an assault on the insurgent-held town of Marja, in the southern province of Helmand. U.S. [Marines](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/topic\/United-States-Marine-Corps) achieved a relatively quick victory, even as McChrystal planned a more ambitious offensive in [Kandahar](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/place\/Kandahar). Obama visited Afghanistan for the first time as president on March 28, delivering a stern message to Karzai that he needed to clean up corruption in his government. [Karzai](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/biography\/Hamid-Karzai) had won a new five-year term in an August 2009 election that was tainted by widespread allegations of fraud. Karzai vowed in his inaugural address to stamp out corruption in his government, but there were few signs in the short term that he had done so.\n\nMeanwhile, Karzai announced that he would attempt to [reconcile](https:\/\/www.merriam-webster.com\/dictionary\/reconcile) with the Taliban; he repeatedly invited [Mullah Omar](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/biography\/Mohammad-Omar) to meet with him, but the Taliban leader steadfastly refused. Under intense pressure from the [United States](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/place\/United-States), Karzai lashed out in April 2010 and even threatened to join the Taliban if the international [community](https:\/\/www.merriam-webster.com\/dictionary\/community) did not stop meddling in Afghan affairs. Troubled by the comments, the White House threatened to revoke Karzai’s invitation to meet with Obama in Washington, [D.C.](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/place\/Washington-DC), but the visit occurred as scheduled, with Karzai and Obama at least outwardly making efforts to mend their relationship.\n\n[Pakistan](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/topic\/history-of-Pakistan) offered to mediate Afghan peace talks, but Pakistan’s ultimate attitude toward the Taliban remained a matter of great controversy. In February 2010, Pakistani security forces arrested the Afghan Taliban’s second-in-command, Mullah [Abdul Ghani Baradar](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/biography\/Mullah-Abdul-Ghani-Baradar), a move interpreted by many U.S. officials as a reflection of Pakistan’s desire to work with the U.S. and Afghan governments to stem the group’s influence. But others, including Kai Eide, the former top UN official in [Kabul](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/place\/Kabul), said Baradar had been a leading Taliban proponent of reconciliation and that the arrest was intended to scuttle efforts to end the war through a political, rather than military, solution.\n\n[![Petraeus, David](https:\/\/cdn.britannica.com\/10\/187810-050-922722A0\/David-Petraeus-Kandahar-Afghanistan-July-2010.jpg?w=300)](https:\/\/cdn.britannica.com\/10\/187810-050-922722A0\/David-Petraeus-Kandahar-Afghanistan-July-2010.jpg)\n\n[Petraeus, David](https:\/\/cdn.britannica.com\/10\/187810-050-922722A0\/David-Petraeus-Kandahar-Afghanistan-July-2010.jpg)Gen. David Petraeus (left), Kandahār, Afghanistan, July 2010.\n\n(more)\n\nThe military command structure in Afghanistan abruptly changed again in June 2010, when Obama replaced [McChrystal](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/biography\/Stanley-McChrystal) with Gen. [David Petraeus](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/biography\/David-Petraeus) after McChrystal and some of his aides made [disparaging](https:\/\/www.merriam-webster.com\/dictionary\/disparaging) remarks to a [*Rolling Stone*](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/topic\/Rolling-Stone) magazine reporter about Obama and other top administration officials, including Vice Pres. [Joe Biden](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/biography\/Joe-Biden), National Security Advisor James L. Jones, and special representative to Afghanistan [Richard Holbrooke](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/biography\/Richard-Holbrooke). The comments underscored festering tensions between U.S. military commanders in Afghanistan and some members of the Obama administration’s civilian leadership. In explaining the change of command, Obama said, “I welcome debate among my team, but I won’t tolerate division.” Despite the switch, Obama vowed that U.S. strategy in Afghanistan would not change. Petraeus, considered the leading architect of counterinsurgency doctrine in the U.S. military, was expected to continue McChrystal’s emphasis on protecting the Afghan population from insurgents, building Afghan government institutions, and seeking to limit civilian casualties.\n\n[Griff Witte](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/contributor\/Griff-Witte\/7832094) [The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/editor\/The-Editors-of-Encyclopaedia-Britannica\/4419)\n\n[![Julian Assange](https:\/\/cdn.britannica.com\/35\/145635-050-4B4D1C91\/Julian-Assange-military-documents-WikiLeaks-Australian-press-July-26-2010.jpg?w=300)](https:\/\/cdn.britannica.com\/35\/145635-050-4B4D1C91\/Julian-Assange-military-documents-WikiLeaks-Australian-press-July-26-2010.jpg)\n\n[Julian Assange](https:\/\/cdn.britannica.com\/35\/145635-050-4B4D1C91\/Julian-Assange-military-documents-WikiLeaks-Australian-press-July-26-2010.jpg)WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange at a press conference, 2010.\n\n(more)\n\nShortly after McChrystal’s dismissal, a [cache](https:\/\/www.merriam-webster.com\/dictionary\/cache) of classified documents relating to the Afghanistan War was published online by the whistle-blowing journalistic organization [WikiLeaks](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/topic\/WikiLeaks) and prereleased to several newspapers, including [*The New York Times*](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/topic\/The-New-York-Times), [*Der Spiegel*](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/topic\/Der-Spiegel-German-magazine), and [*The Guardian*](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/topic\/The-Guardian-British-newspaper). The information was mainly in the form of raw intelligence gathered between 2004 and 2009, and WikiLeaks cumulatively termed it the “Afghan War Diary.” It detailed previously unreported civilian deaths, indicated that a U.S. special forces unit was tasked with capturing or killing the persons on a list of insurgent leaders, revealed that the Taliban had employed heat-seeking missiles against aircraft, and suggested that the Pakistani intelligence service had been working with Taliban forces in spite of substantial U.S. aid to Pakistan for its assistance in combating militants. The U.S. government criticized the disclosure as a security [breach](https:\/\/www.merriam-webster.com\/dictionary\/breach) but stated that the substance of the leak corresponded with other known intelligence and did not contain new information.\n\n[![U.S. government officials during the Osama bin Laden mission](https:\/\/cdn.britannica.com\/02\/149702-050-81E09374\/Pres-Robert-M-Gates-Barack-Obama-Hillary-May-2011.jpg?w=300)1 of 2](https:\/\/cdn.britannica.com\/02\/149702-050-81E09374\/Pres-Robert-M-Gates-Barack-Obama-Hillary-May-2011.jpg)\n\n[U.S. government officials during the Osama bin Laden mission](https:\/\/cdn.britannica.com\/02\/149702-050-81E09374\/Pres-Robert-M-Gates-Barack-Obama-Hillary-May-2011.jpg)U.S. Pres. Barack Obama (seated second from left) and various other government officials—including Vice Pres. Joe Biden (seated left), Secretary of Defense Robert M. Gates (seated right), and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton (seated second from right)—receiving updates in the Situation Room of the White House during the Osama bin Laden mission, May 2011.\n\n(more)\n\n[![Watch the speech by U.S. Pres. Barack Obama announcing the killing of Osama bin Laden by U.S. forces, May 2011](https:\/\/cdn.britannica.com\/00\/149700-138-F86AC30C\/Pres-forces-Barack-Obama-Osama-bin-Laden-May-2011.jpg?w=800&h=450&c=crop)2 of 2](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/video\/Pres-forces-Barack-Obama-Osama-bin-Laden-May-2011\/-156230)\n\nWatch the speech by U.S. Pres. Barack Obama announcing the killing of Osama bin Laden by U.S. forces, May 2011Pres. Barack Obama announcing that U.S. forces had killed Osama bin Laden, May 2011.\n\n(more)\n\n[See all videos for this article](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/event\/Afghanistan-War\/images-videos)\n\nDevelopments with some of the primary objectives of the war—apprehending key al-Qaeda leaders and dealing with the Taliban—were front and center in 2011. Nearly 10 years after eluding capture at Tora Bora in Afghanistan, bin Laden was [killed by U.S. forces](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/event\/Killing-of-Osama-bin-Laden) on May 2, 2011, after U.S. intelligence located him living in a secure [compound](https:\/\/www.merriam-webster.com\/dictionary\/compound) in [Abbottabad](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/place\/Abbottabad), Pakistan. The operation, a raid carried out by a small team that reached the compound by [helicopter](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/technology\/helicopter), led to a firefight in which bin Laden died. The next month U.S. Secretary of Defense [Robert Gates](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/biography\/Robert-M-Gates) confirmed for the first time that the U.S. government was holding reconciliation talks with the Taliban, although he stressed that efforts to negotiate an end to the conflict were still in the preliminary stages. Then, on June 22, Obama announced an [accelerated](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/dictionary\/accelerated) timetable for the withdrawal of U.S. forces from Afghanistan, saying that the United States had largely achieved its goals by disrupting al-Qaeda’s operations and killing many of its leaders. The plan called for the number of U.S. troops in Afghanistan to be reduced by as many as 30,000 within a year, in preparation for a complete withdrawal of combat forces by the end of 2014. Hours after Obama’s announcement, French Pres. [Nicolas Sarkozy](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/biography\/Nicolas-Sarkozy) announced that [France](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/place\/France) would also begin to withdraw its 4,000 soldiers from Afghanistan. In September, efforts to end the long-running conflict suffered a setback when Burhanuddin Rabbani, a former Afghan president and a key figure in [reconciliation](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/dictionary\/reconciliation) negotiations, was assassinated by a [suicide](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/topic\/suicide) bomber.\n\nA series of incidents in early 2012 heightened tensions between the U.S. and the Afghan government and provoked public outrage. In mid-January, a video showing U.S. Marines urinating on dead Afghans circulated in the media, drawing apologies from U.S. officials. Weeks later, Afghans rioted and held protests over reports that U.S. soldiers had disposed of copies of the Qurʾān at a military base by burning them. Then, on March 11, a U.S. soldier allegedly left an American base near Panjwai and broke into several homes, shooting dead 17 Afghans, mostly women and children. The incident provoked [widespread](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/dictionary\/widespread) demonstrations and a sharp condemnation from Karzai. Days later, the Taliban suspended participation in talks with the United States and the Afghan government.\n\nLater that year [NATO](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/topic\/North-Atlantic-Treaty-Organization)’s efforts to train and equip the Afghan army and police were hampered by an increase in attacks in which Afghan soldiers and police turned their weapons on NATO soldiers. These attacks forced NATO troops to institute more rigorous screening procedures and to suspend the training of certain units.\n\nMeanwhile, in early 2012, U.S. and Afghan negotiators reached agreements regarding two issues that had been sources of friction between the Obama and Karzai administrations. The first agreement, signed in March, set a six-month timetable for the transfer of Afghan detainees held by the U.S. military to Afghan custody. The second agreement, signed in April, established that Afghan forces would oversee and lead night raids to apprehend or kill Taliban leaders. These raids, previously led by U.S. special forces, had since 2009 become a major component of the campaign against the Taliban. Afghan leaders, however, had long objected that the raids violated Afghan [sovereignty](https:\/\/www.merriam-webster.com\/dictionary\/sovereignty) and that surprise invasions of private homes ultimately alienated [public opinion](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/topic\/public-opinion) and increased support for the insurgency.\n\n## The U.S. withdrawal and the return of the Taliban\nThe agreements in March and April concerning detainees and night raids cleared the way for the United States and Afghanistan to reach a further agreement in May outlining a framework for economic and security cooperation between the two countries following the withdrawal of NATO combat troops in 2014. The agreement expressed the United States’ commitment to continuing military support for the Afghan government after 2014, although it left unanswered the question of whether or not some U.S. and NATO forces would remain in Afghanistan as trainers and advisers after 2014. That was to be determined by a separate pact, the Bilateral Security Agreement. Even though the presence of foreign troops in Afghanistan remained deeply unpopular, many Afghans feared that a sudden withdrawal would allow the country to slip into civil war or [chaos](https:\/\/www.merriam-webster.com\/dictionary\/chaos).\n\n[![Ashraf Ghani](https:\/\/cdn.britannica.com\/33\/180833-050-89B0343D\/declaration-Afg-Kabul-candidates-hands-Abdullah-government-August-8-2014.jpg?w=300)](https:\/\/cdn.britannica.com\/33\/180833-050-89B0343D\/declaration-Afg-Kabul-candidates-hands-Abdullah-government-August-8-2014.jpg)\n\n[Ashraf Ghani](https:\/\/cdn.britannica.com\/33\/180833-050-89B0343D\/declaration-Afg-Kabul-candidates-hands-Abdullah-government-August-8-2014.jpg)Afghan politician Ashraf Ghani (right) shaking hands with his rival for the Afghan presidency, Abdullah Abdullah, August 2014.\n\n(more)\n\nThe issue of leaving foreign troops in the country after the end of NATO combat operations remained unresolved until the last half of 2014. Karzai—by then in the last months of his presidency—had refused to sign the Bilateral Security Agreement before leaving office, and the election of his successor was delayed by a lengthy recount. In late September 2014 Ashraf Ghani was finally inaugurated as president and immediately signed the Bilateral Security Agreement. The U.S. and NATO formally ended their combat mission in Afghanistan on December 28, 2014, but retained a reduced force of approximately 13,000 troops to support and train Afghan troops until a drawdown was [implemented](https:\/\/www.merriam-webster.com\/dictionary\/implemented) in 2020. A [full withdrawal of U.S. troops](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/event\/withdrawal-of-United-States-troops-from-Afghanistan), initiated in 2020 and continued into 2021, anticipated the end of U.S. deployment to Afghanistan, but the resurgence of the Taliban during the withdrawal left the country in similar straits to when U.S. forces had arrived 20 years earlier.\n\n## Casualties\nBetween 2001 and the end of major combat operations in December 2014, 3,486 NATO troops were killed the [U.S. Department of Defense](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/topic\/US-Department-of-Defense) recorded 2,354 American service members and DoD civilian employees killed and 20,149 wounded in Afghanistan and other theaters related to Operation Enduring Freedom. Among NATO forces, losses were heaviest for the United Kingdom (457 killed, some 2,000 wounded), [Canada](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/place\/Canada) (158 killed, more than 2,000 wounded), and France (90 killed, some 700 wounded. With 43 service members killed, [Denmark’s](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/place\/Denmark) casualties were among the highest in NATO on a per capita basis (Denmark’s population was about 5.6 million in 2014). Non-NATO countries also suffered losses, most notably [Australia](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/place\/Australia) (41 killed, 263 wounded) and [Georgia](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/place\/Georgia) (32 killed, 435 wounded—overwhelmingly the highest per capita casualty rate among coalition partners).\n\nMore than 78,000 Afghan military personnel and police officers were killed during the conflict. The Taliban and other [affiliated](https:\/\/www.merriam-webster.com\/dictionary\/affiliated) groups lost some 84,000 troops. Civilian suffering was enormous. At least 47,000 Afghan civilians were killed in the fighting, and tens of thousands more died from indirect causes such as hunger and disease. Approximately 2.7 Afghans were forced to flee to neighboring countries such as Pakistan or Iran, and 4 million more were internally displaced. By the time the Taliban recaptured Kabul in August 2021, entire generations of Afghans had come to adulthood knowing nothing but war.\n\n[The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/editor\/The-Editors-of-Encyclopaedia-Britannica\/4419)\n\nLoad Next Page\n\nFeedback\n\nThank you for your feedback\n\nOur editors will review what you’ve submitted and determine whether to revise the article.\n\n*print* Print\n\nPlease select which sections you would like to print:\n\n*verified*Cite\n\nWhile every effort has been made to follow citation style rules, there may be some discrepancies. Please refer to the appropriate style manual or other sources if you have any questions.\n\nSelect Citation Style\n\nWitte, Griff. \"Afghanistan War\". *Encyclopedia Britannica*, 7 Apr. 2026, https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/event\/Afghanistan-War. Accessed 9 April 2026.\n\nCopy Citation\n\nShare\n\nShare to social media\n\n[Facebook](https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/BRITANNICA\/) [X](https:\/\/x.com\/britannica)\n\nURL\n\n<https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/event\/Afghanistan-War>\n\nExternal Websites\n\n- [Imperial War Museums - Afghanistan War: How did 9\/11 lead to a 20-year war?](https:\/\/www.iwm.org.uk\/history\/afghanistan-war-how-did-911-lead-to-a-20-year-war)\n- [National Army Museum - War in Afghanistan](https:\/\/www.nam.ac.uk\/explore\/war-afghanistan)\n- [United States Institute of Peace - In Afghanistan, Was a Loss Better than Peace?](https:\/\/www.usip.org\/publications\/2022\/11\/afghanistan-was-loss-better-peace)\n- [Council on Foreign Relations - The U.S. War in Afghanistan](https:\/\/www.cfr.org\/timelines\/us-war-afghanistan)\n- [The Canadian Encyclopedia - War in Afghanistan](https:\/\/www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca\/en\/article\/international-campaign-against-terrorism-in-afghanistan)\n- [Teach Democracy - The War in Afghanistan: What Should America's Policy Be?](https:\/\/teachdemocracy.org\/images\/pdf\/gates\/War-in-Afginistan.pdf)\n- [CNN - US War in Afghanistan Fast Facts](https:\/\/edition.cnn.com\/world\/operation-enduring-freedom-fast-facts)\n- [Al Jazeera - Afghanistan: The price of peace](https:\/\/www.aljazeera.com\/video\/featured-documentaries\/2025\/1\/24\/afghanistan-the-price-of-peace)\n- [BBC - Afghanistan war: What could peace look like?](https:\/\/www.bbc.com\/news\/world-asia-47733079)","attrs_readable_markdown":"Top Questions\n\n### What was the cause of the Afghanistan War?\n### What were the three phases of the Afghanistan War?\n### What was the outcome of the U.S. troop surge in Afghanistan under Obama?\n### How many NATO troops were killed during the Afghanistan War?\n### What was the impact of the Afghanistan War on civilians?\n## News •\n**Afghanistan War**, international conflict in [Afghanistan](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/place\/Afghanistan) beginning in 2001 that was triggered by the [September 11 attacks](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/event\/September-11-attacks) and consisted of three phases. The first phase—toppling the [Taliban](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/topic\/Taliban) (the ultraconservative political and religious faction that ruled Afghanistan and provided sanctuary for [al-Qaeda](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/topic\/al-Qaeda), perpetrators of the September 11 attacks)—was brief, lasting just two months. The second phase, from 2002 until 2008, was marked by a [U.S.](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/topic\/history-of-United-States) strategy of defeating the Taliban militarily and rebuilding core institutions of the [Afghan](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/topic\/Pashtun) state. The third phase, a turn to classic counterinsurgency doctrine, began in 2008 and accelerated with U.S. Pres. [Barack Obama](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/biography\/Barack-Obama)’s 2009 decision to temporarily increase the U.S. troop presence in Afghanistan. The larger force was used to [implement](https:\/\/www.merriam-webster.com\/dictionary\/implement) a strategy of protecting the population from Taliban attacks and supporting efforts to reintegrate insurgents into Afghan society. The strategy came coupled with a timetable for the withdrawal of the foreign forces from Afghanistan; beginning in 2011, security responsibilities would be gradually handed over to the Afghan military and police. The new approach largely failed to achieve its aims. Insurgent attacks and civilian casualties remained stubbornly high, while many of the Afghan military and police units taking over security duties appeared to be ill-prepared to hold off the Taliban. By the time the U.S. and [NATO](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/topic\/North-Atlantic-Treaty-Organization) combat mission formally ended in December 2014, the 13-year Afghanistan War had become the longest [war](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/topic\/war) ever fought by the [United States](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/place\/United-States). American military [casualties](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/dictionary\/casualties) included some 2,400 service members killed and some 20,700 others wounded.\n\n## Prelude to the September 11 attacks\nThe joint U.S. and [British](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/topic\/history-of-United-Kingdom) invasion of Afghanistan in late 2001 was preceded by over two decades of war in Afghanistan (*see* [Afghan War](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/event\/Afghan-War)). On December 24, 1979, Soviet tanks rumbled across the [Amu Darya](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/place\/Amu-Darya) River and into Afghanistan, ostensibly to restore stability following a coup that brought to power a pair of Marxist-Leninist political groups—the People’s (Khalq) Party and the Banner (Parcham) Party. But the Soviet presence touched off a nationwide rebellion by fighters—known as the [mujahideen](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/topic\/mujahideen-Afghani-rebels)—who drew upon [Islam](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/topic\/Islam) as a uniting source of inspiration. These fighters won extensive covert backing from [Pakistan](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/place\/Pakistan), [Saudi Arabia](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/place\/Saudi-Arabia), and the United States and were joined in their fight by foreign volunteers (who soon formed a network, known as [al-Qaeda](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/topic\/al-Qaeda), to coordinate their efforts). The [guerrilla war](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/topic\/guerrilla-warfare) against the Soviet forces led to their departure in 1989. In the Soviets’ absence, the [mujahideen](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/topic\/mujahideen-Islam) ousted Afghanistan’s Soviet-backed government and established a transitional government.\n\nThe mujahideen were politically fragmented, however, and in 1994 armed conflict [escalated](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/dictionary\/escalated). The Taliban emerged and in 1996 seized [Kabul](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/place\/Kabul). It instituted a severe interpretation of [Islamic law](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/topic\/sharia) that, for example, forbade female education and prescribed the severing of hands, or even [execution](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/topic\/capital-punishment), as punishment for petty crimes. That same year, [al-Qaeda](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/topic\/al-Qaeda) leader [Osama bin Laden](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/biography\/Osama-bin-Laden) was welcomed to Afghanistan (having been expelled from Sudan) and established his organization’s headquarters there. With al-Qaeda’s help, the Taliban won control of over 90 percent of Afghan territory by the summer of 2001. On September 9 of that year, al-Qaeda hit men carried out the assassination of famed mujahideen leader Ahmad Shah Masoud, who at the time was leading the [Northern Alliance](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/topic\/Northern-Alliance) (a loose coalition of mujahideen militias that maintained control of a small section of northern Afghanistan) as it battled the Taliban and who had unsuccessfully sought greater U.S. backing for his efforts.\n\n## The September 11 attacks and the [U.S.](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/topic\/history-of-United-States)\\-[British](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/topic\/history-of-United-Kingdom) invasion\nThe hijacking and crashing of four U.S. jetliners on September 11, 2001, brought instant attention to Afghanistan. The plot had been hatched by al-Qaeda, and some of the 19 hijackers had trained in Afghanistan. In the aftermath of the attacks, the administration of U.S. Pres. [George W. Bush](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/biography\/George-W-Bush) coalesced around a strategy of first ousting the Taliban from Afghanistan and dismantling al-Qaeda, though others contemplated actions in [Iraq](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/place\/Iraq), including long-standing plans for toppling Pres. [Saddam Hussein](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/biography\/Saddam-Hussein). Bush demanded that Taliban leader Mullah [Mohammed Omar](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/biography\/Mohammad-Omar) “deliver to \\[the\\] United States authorities all the leaders of al-Qaeda who hide in your land,” and when Omar refused, U.S. officials began [implementing](https:\/\/www.merriam-webster.com\/dictionary\/implementing) a plan for war.\n\nThe campaign in Afghanistan started covertly on September 26, with a [Central Intelligence Agency](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/topic\/Central-Intelligence-Agency) (CIA) team known as Jawbreaker arriving in the country and, working with anti-Taliban allies, initiating a strategy for overthrowing the regime. U.S. officials hoped that by partnering with the Afghans they could avoid [deploying](https:\/\/www.merriam-webster.com\/dictionary\/deploying) a large force to Afghanistan. Pentagon officials were especially concerned that the United States not be drawn into a protracted occupation of Afghanistan, as had occurred with the Soviets more than two decades prior. The United States relied primarily on the [Northern Alliance](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/topic\/Northern-Alliance), which had just lost Massoud but had regrouped under other commanders, including [Tajik](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/topic\/Tajik-people) leader Mohammed Fahim and Abdul Rashid Dostum, an [Uzbek](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/topic\/Uzbek-people). The Americans also teamed with anti-Taliban [Pashtuns](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/topic\/Pashtun) in southern Afghanistan, including a little-known tribal leader named [Hamid Karzai](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/biography\/Hamid-Karzai).\n\n[![Civil War era cannon overlooks Kennesaw Mountain National Battle. (military, artillery, American history)](https:\/\/cdn.britannica.com\/27\/273327-131-76BD5EF0\/civil-war-cannon-overlooks-keneesaw-mountain-national-battle.jpg) Britannica Quiz Pick Your Battles Quiz](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/quiz\/pick-your-battles-quiz)\n\nThe CIA team was soon joined by U.S. and British special forces [contingents](https:\/\/www.merriam-webster.com\/dictionary\/contingents), and together they provided arms, equipment, and advice to the Afghans. They also helped coordinate targeting for the air campaign, which began on October 7, 2001, with U.S. and British war planes pounding Taliban targets, thus marking the public start of Operation Enduring Freedom. In late October, [Northern Alliance](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/topic\/Northern-Alliance) forces began to overtake a series of towns formerly held by the Taliban. The forces worked with U.S. assistance, but they defied U.S. wishes when, on November 13, they marched into Kabul as the Taliban retreated without a fight.\n\n[Kandahar](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/place\/Kandahar), the largest city in southern Afghanistan and the Taliban’s spiritual home, fell on December 6, marking the end of Taliban power. It had been besieged by a force led by Karzai that moved in from the north and one commanded by Gul Agha Sherzai that advanced from the south; both operated with heavy assistance from the [United States](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/place\/United-States). As the Taliban leadership retreated into Afghanistan’s rural areas and across the border to [Pakistan](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/place\/Pakistan), anti-Taliban figures [convened](https:\/\/www.merriam-webster.com\/dictionary\/convened) at a [United Nations](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/topic\/United-Nations) (UN)-sponsored conference in Bonn, [Germany](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/place\/Germany). With behind-the-scenes maneuvering by the United States, [Karzai](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/biography\/Hamid-Karzai) was selected to lead the country on an [interim](https:\/\/www.merriam-webster.com\/dictionary\/interim) basis.\n\nGo beyond the basics with trusted, in-depth knowledge for professionals, students, and lifelong learners.\n\n[SUBSCRIBE](https:\/\/premium.britannica.com\/premium-membership\/?utm_source=premium&utm_medium=inline-cta&utm_campaign=basics-2026)\n\n![Penguin, ship, mountain, atlas](https:\/\/cdn.britannica.com\/marketing\/inline-left.webp)\n\n![shohei ohtani, plants, andy wharhol art](https:\/\/cdn.britannica.com\/marketing\/inline-right.webp)\n\n![Mobile](https:\/\/cdn.britannica.com\/marketing\/inline-mobile.webp?w=400)\n\nAn intensive manhunt for Omar, [bin Laden](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/biography\/Osama-bin-Laden), and al-Qaeda deputy chief [Ayman al-Zawahiri](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/biography\/Ayman-al-Zawahiri) was undertaken. Prior to the killing of bin Laden by U.S. forces in 2011 (*see below*), the Americans were believed to have come closest to bin Laden in the December 2001 battle of Tora Bora (bin Laden’s mountain stronghold). But bin Laden was thought to have managed to have slipped into Pakistan with the help of Afghan and Pakistani forces that were supposedly helping the Americans. Critics later questioned why the U.S. military had allowed Afghan forces to lead the assault on the cave complex at Tora Bora rather than doing it themselves. (Indeed, Democratic presidential candidate Sen. [John Kerry](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/biography\/John-Kerry) made this [criticism](https:\/\/www.merriam-webster.com\/dictionary\/criticism) repeatedly during the 2004 general election campaign.) [Al-Qaeda](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/topic\/al-Qaeda) subsequently reestablished its base of operations in the tribal areas that form Pakistan’s northwest border with Afghanistan. Omar and his top Taliban lieutenants settled in and around the Pakistani city of [Quetta](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/place\/Quetta-Pakistan), in the remote southwestern province of [Balochistān](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/place\/Balochistan). One of the final major battles of the first phase of the war came in March 2002 with Operation Anaconda in the eastern province of Paktia, which involved U.S. and Afghan forces fighting some 800 al-Qaeda and Taliban militants. The operation also marked the entrance of other countries’ troops into the war: [special operations forces](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/topic\/special-operations-warfare) from [Australia](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/place\/Australia), Canada, [Denmark](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/place\/Denmark), [France](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/place\/France), Germany, and [Norway](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/place\/Norway) participated.\n\n## Iraq takes center stage\nWith the ouster of the Taliban and al-Qaeda, the international focus shifted to reconstruction and nation-building efforts in Afghanistan. In April 2002 Bush announced a “[Marshall Plan](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/event\/Marshall-Plan)” for Afghanistan in a speech at the [Virginia Military Institute](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/topic\/Virginia-Military-Institute), promising substantial financial assistance. But from the start, development efforts in Afghanistan were inadequately funded, as attention had turned among U.S. officials to the looming [confrontation](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/dictionary\/confrontation) in Iraq. Between 2001 and 2009, just over \\$38 billion in humanitarian and reconstruction assistance to Afghanistan was appropriated by the U.S. Congress. More than half the money went to training and equipping Afghan security forces, and the remainder represented a fraction of the amount that experts said would be required to develop a country that had consistently ranked near the bottom of global [human development](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/science\/human-development) indices. The aid program was also bedeviled by waste and by confusion over whether civilian or military authorities had responsibility for leading education, health, agriculture, and other development projects.\n\nDespite military commitments from dozens of U.S. allies, the United States initially argued against allowing the other foreign forces—operating as the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF)—to [deploy](https:\/\/www.merriam-webster.com\/dictionary\/deploy) beyond the Kabul area. That choice was directed by the [Pentagon](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/topic\/Pentagon), which insisted on a “light footprint” out of concern that Afghanistan would become a drag on U.S. resources as attention shifted to Iraq (*see* [Iraq War](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/event\/Iraq-War)). When ISAF did begin to venture beyond Kabul, its efforts were hampered by the “caveats” of its component countries—restrictions that kept all but a handful of the militaries from actively engaging in the fight against the Taliban and al-Qaeda. The force, overseen by the [North Atlantic Treaty Organization](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/topic\/North-Atlantic-Treaty-Organization) (NATO) in the organization’s first mission outside Europe, was also hamstrung by a lack of troops as international commitments to Afghanistan flagged.\n\nThe [United States](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/topic\/history-of-United-States) consistently represented the largest foreign force in Afghanistan, and it [bore](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/dictionary\/bore) the heaviest losses. By spring 2010 more than 1,000 [U.S.](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/topic\/history-of-United-States) troops had been killed in Afghanistan, while the [British](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/topic\/history-of-United-Kingdom) troops suffered some 300 deaths and the Canadians some 150. Both [Britain](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/place\/United-Kingdom) and [Canada](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/place\/Canada) stationed their troops in Afghanistan’s south, where fighting had been most intense. More than 20 other countries also lost troops during the war, though many—such as Germany and Italy—chose to focus their forces in the north and the west, where the insurgency was less potent. As the fighting dragged on and casualties escalated, the war lost popularity in many Western countries, creating domestic political pressure to keep troops out of harm’s way or to pull them out altogether.\n\nInitially, the war appeared to have been won with relative ease. On May 1, 2003, U.S. Secretary of Defense [Donald Rumsfeld](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/biography\/Donald-Rumsfeld) announced an end to “major combat” in Afghanistan. On the same day, aboard the [aircraft carrier](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/technology\/aircraft-carrier) USS *Abraham Lincoln*, President Bush announced that “major combat operations in Iraq have ended.” At that time, there were 8,000 U.S. troops in Afghanistan. The first democratic Afghan elections since the fall of the Taliban were held on October 9, 2004, with approximately 80 percent of registered voters turning out to give [Karzai](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/biography\/Hamid-Karzai) a full five-year term as president. Parliamentary elections were staged a year later, with dozens of women claiming seats set aside for them to ensure gender [diversity](https:\/\/www.merriam-webster.com\/dictionary\/diversity). The 2004 constitution provided Afghanistan with a powerful central government and weak regional and local authorities—a structure that was in opposition to the country’s long-standing traditions.\n\nDespite vast powers under the constitution, Karzai was widely regarded as a weak leader who grew increasingly isolated as the war progressed. He survived several assassination attempts—including a September 2004 rocket attack that nearly struck a helicopter he was riding in—and security concerns kept him largely confined to the presidential palace in Kabul. Karzai’s government was beset by corruption, and efforts to build a national army and a police force were troubled from the start by [inadequate](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/dictionary\/inadequate) international support and ethnic differences between Afghans.\n\n## [Taliban](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/topic\/Taliban) resurgence\nBeginning in 2005, violence climbed as the Taliban reasserted its presence with new tactics modeled on those being used by insurgents in Iraq. Whereas early in the war the Taliban had focused on battling U.S. and [NATO](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/topic\/North-Atlantic-Treaty-Organization) forces in open combat—a strategy that largely failed to inflict significant damage—their adoption of the use of [suicide](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/topic\/suicide) bombings and buried bombs, known as IEDs ([improvised explosive device](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/technology\/improvised-explosive-device)s), began to cause heavy casualties. Between January 2005 and August 2006, Afghanistan endured 64 suicide attacks—a tactic that had been virtually unknown in the country’s history before then. At first the attacks caused relatively few casualties, but as training and the availability of high-powered explosives increased, the death toll began to climb: in one particularly vicious attack in November 2007, at least 70 people—many of them children—were killed as a parliamentary delegation visited the northern town of [Baghlan](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/place\/Baghlan). Less than a year later, a bombing at the [Indian](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/topic\/Indigenous-peoples-of-the-Americas) embassy in Kabul killed more than 50; the Afghan government accused elements of Pakistan’s intelligence service of complicity in the attack, a charge Pakistan denied.\n\n[Afghanistan War](https:\/\/cdn.britannica.com\/09\/187809-050-13C72062\/operations-forces-search-combat-patrol-fighters-Taliban-April-2007.jpg)U.S. special operations forces conducting a mounted combat patrol in search of Taliban fighters in Helmand province, Afghanistan, April 2007.\n\nThe Taliban’s resurgence corresponded with a rise in anti-American and anti-Western [sentiment](https:\/\/www.merriam-webster.com\/dictionary\/sentiment) among Afghans. Those feelings were nurtured by the sluggish pace of reconstruction, allegations of prisoner abuse at U.S. detention facilities, widespread corruption in the Afghan government, and civilian casualties caused by U.S. and NATO bombings. In May 2006 a U.S. military vehicle crashed and killed several Afghans, an event that sparked violent anti-American riots in Kabul—the worst since the war began. Later that year NATO took command of the war across the country; American officials said that the United States would play a lesser role and that the face of the war would become increasingly international. This shift reflected the greater need for U.S. troops and resources in Iraq, where sectarian warfare was reaching alarming levels. By contrast, the war in Afghanistan was still regarded in Washington as a relative success.\n\nFor commanders on the ground in Afghanistan, however, it was apparent that the Taliban intended to [escalate](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/dictionary\/escalate) its campaign, launching more frequent attacks and intensifying its fund-raising from wealthy individuals and groups in the [Persian Gulf](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/place\/Persian-Gulf). Another source of money was Afghanistan’s resurgent [opium](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/science\/opium) industry. International pressure had forced the Taliban to curb [poppy](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/plant\/poppy) cultivation during their final year in power, but after their removal in 2001 the opium industry made a comeback, with revenues in some areas of the country benefiting the insurgency. Western-backed campaigns to eliminate poppy cultivation or to encourage farmers to grow other crops had little discernible impact; Afghanistan soon became the supplier of over 90 percent of the world’s opium.\n\nQuick Facts\n\nDate:\n\nDecember 2001 - 2014\n\nThe United States, meanwhile, had had only limited success in killing or capturing Taliban commanders. In early 2007, Mullah Obaidullah Akhund—the Taliban’s number three leader—was captured in Pakistan, and months later Mullah Dadullah—the Taliban’s top military commander—was killed in fighting with U.S. forces. But those were the exceptions. Top [insurgent](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/dictionary\/insurgent) leaders remained at large, many of them in the tribal regions of Pakistan that adjoin Afghanistan. This reality prompted the United States to begin targeting insurgent leaders who lived in [Pakistan](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/topic\/history-of-Pakistan) with missiles fired from [remotely piloted drones](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/technology\/unmanned-aerial-vehicle). The [CIA](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/topic\/Central-Intelligence-Agency) program of targeted killings was publicly denied by U.S. officials but was widely acknowledged in private. Pakistani officials in turn denounced the strikes in public but privately approved of them as long as civilian casualties were limited. The United States repeatedly threatened to expand its [drone](https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/dictionary\/drone) strikes beyond Pakistan’s tribal areas and into regions such as Balochistān if Pakistan did not demonstrate greater cooperation in battling the Taliban, a group it had long fostered.","meta_canonical":null}

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Meta Description	Afghanistan War, international conflict beginning in 2001 that was triggered by the September 11 attacks. U.S. forces quickly toppled the Taliban (the faction that ruled Afghanistan and provided sanctuary for al-Qaeda) in the first months of the war, only to face years of insurgency led by a reconstituted Taliban.
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Boilerpipe Text	Top Questions What was the cause of the Afghanistan War? What were the three phases of the Afghanistan War? What was the outcome of the U.S. troop surge in Afghanistan under Obama? How many NATO troops were killed during the Afghanistan War? What was the impact of the Afghanistan War on civilians? News • Afghanistan War , international conflict in Afghanistan beginning in 2001 that was triggered by the September 11 attacks and consisted of three phases. The first phase—toppling the Taliban (the ultraconservative political and religious faction that ruled Afghanistan and provided sanctuary for al-Qaeda , perpetrators of the September 11 attacks)—was brief, lasting just two months. The second phase, from 2002 until 2008, was marked by a U.S. strategy of defeating the Taliban militarily and rebuilding core institutions of the Afghan state. The third phase, a turn to classic counterinsurgency doctrine, began in 2008 and accelerated with U.S. Pres. Barack Obama ’s 2009 decision to temporarily increase the U.S. troop presence in Afghanistan. The larger force was used to implement a strategy of protecting the population from Taliban attacks and supporting efforts to reintegrate insurgents into Afghan society. The strategy came coupled with a timetable for the withdrawal of the foreign forces from Afghanistan; beginning in 2011, security responsibilities would be gradually handed over to the Afghan military and police. The new approach largely failed to achieve its aims. Insurgent attacks and civilian casualties remained stubbornly high, while many of the Afghan military and police units taking over security duties appeared to be ill-prepared to hold off the Taliban. By the time the U.S. and NATO combat mission formally ended in December 2014, the 13-year Afghanistan War had become the longest war ever fought by the United States . American military casualties included some 2,400 service members killed and some 20,700 others wounded. Prelude to the September 11 attacks The joint U.S. and British invasion of Afghanistan in late 2001 was preceded by over two decades of war in Afghanistan ( see Afghan War ). On December 24, 1979, Soviet tanks rumbled across the Amu Darya River and into Afghanistan, ostensibly to restore stability following a coup that brought to power a pair of Marxist-Leninist political groups—the People’s (Khalq) Party and the Banner (Parcham) Party. But the Soviet presence touched off a nationwide rebellion by fighters—known as the mujahideen —who drew upon Islam as a uniting source of inspiration. These fighters won extensive covert backing from Pakistan , Saudi Arabia , and the United States and were joined in their fight by foreign volunteers (who soon formed a network, known as al-Qaeda , to coordinate their efforts). The guerrilla war against the Soviet forces led to their departure in 1989. In the Soviets’ absence, the mujahideen ousted Afghanistan’s Soviet-backed government and established a transitional government. The mujahideen were politically fragmented, however, and in 1994 armed conflict escalated . The Taliban emerged and in 1996 seized Kabul . It instituted a severe interpretation of Islamic law that, for example, forbade female education and prescribed the severing of hands, or even execution , as punishment for petty crimes. That same year, al-Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden was welcomed to Afghanistan (having been expelled from Sudan) and established his organization’s headquarters there. With al-Qaeda’s help, the Taliban won control of over 90 percent of Afghan territory by the summer of 2001. On September 9 of that year, al-Qaeda hit men carried out the assassination of famed mujahideen leader Ahmad Shah Masoud, who at the time was leading the Northern Alliance (a loose coalition of mujahideen militias that maintained control of a small section of northern Afghanistan) as it battled the Taliban and who had unsuccessfully sought greater U.S. backing for his efforts. The September 11 attacks and the U.S. - British invasion The hijacking and crashing of four U.S. jetliners on September 11, 2001, brought instant attention to Afghanistan. The plot had been hatched by al-Qaeda, and some of the 19 hijackers had trained in Afghanistan. In the aftermath of the attacks, the administration of U.S. Pres. George W. Bush coalesced around a strategy of first ousting the Taliban from Afghanistan and dismantling al-Qaeda, though others contemplated actions in Iraq , including long-standing plans for toppling Pres. Saddam Hussein . Bush demanded that Taliban leader Mullah Mohammed Omar “deliver to [the] United States authorities all the leaders of al-Qaeda who hide in your land,” and when Omar refused, U.S. officials began implementing a plan for war. The campaign in Afghanistan started covertly on September 26, with a Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) team known as Jawbreaker arriving in the country and, working with anti-Taliban allies, initiating a strategy for overthrowing the regime. U.S. officials hoped that by partnering with the Afghans they could avoid deploying a large force to Afghanistan. Pentagon officials were especially concerned that the United States not be drawn into a protracted occupation of Afghanistan, as had occurred with the Soviets more than two decades prior. The United States relied primarily on the Northern Alliance , which had just lost Massoud but had regrouped under other commanders, including Tajik leader Mohammed Fahim and Abdul Rashid Dostum, an Uzbek . The Americans also teamed with anti-Taliban Pashtuns in southern Afghanistan, including a little-known tribal leader named Hamid Karzai . Britannica Quiz Pick Your Battles Quiz The CIA team was soon joined by U.S. and British special forces contingents , and together they provided arms, equipment, and advice to the Afghans. They also helped coordinate targeting for the air campaign, which began on October 7, 2001, with U.S. and British war planes pounding Taliban targets, thus marking the public start of Operation Enduring Freedom. In late October, Northern Alliance forces began to overtake a series of towns formerly held by the Taliban. The forces worked with U.S. assistance, but they defied U.S. wishes when, on November 13, they marched into Kabul as the Taliban retreated without a fight. Kandahar , the largest city in southern Afghanistan and the Taliban’s spiritual home, fell on December 6, marking the end of Taliban power. It had been besieged by a force led by Karzai that moved in from the north and one commanded by Gul Agha Sherzai that advanced from the south; both operated with heavy assistance from the United States . As the Taliban leadership retreated into Afghanistan’s rural areas and across the border to Pakistan , anti-Taliban figures convened at a United Nations (UN)-sponsored conference in Bonn, Germany . With behind-the-scenes maneuvering by the United States, Karzai was selected to lead the country on an interim basis. Go beyond the basics with trusted, in-depth knowledge for professionals, students, and lifelong learners. SUBSCRIBE An intensive manhunt for Omar, bin Laden , and al-Qaeda deputy chief Ayman al-Zawahiri was undertaken. Prior to the killing of bin Laden by U.S. forces in 2011 ( see below ), the Americans were believed to have come closest to bin Laden in the December 2001 battle of Tora Bora (bin Laden’s mountain stronghold). But bin Laden was thought to have managed to have slipped into Pakistan with the help of Afghan and Pakistani forces that were supposedly helping the Americans. Critics later questioned why the U.S. military had allowed Afghan forces to lead the assault on the cave complex at Tora Bora rather than doing it themselves. (Indeed, Democratic presidential candidate Sen. John Kerry made this criticism repeatedly during the 2004 general election campaign.) Al-Qaeda subsequently reestablished its base of operations in the tribal areas that form Pakistan’s northwest border with Afghanistan. Omar and his top Taliban lieutenants settled in and around the Pakistani city of Quetta , in the remote southwestern province of Balochistān . One of the final major battles of the first phase of the war came in March 2002 with Operation Anaconda in the eastern province of Paktia, which involved U.S. and Afghan forces fighting some 800 al-Qaeda and Taliban militants. The operation also marked the entrance of other countries’ troops into the war: special operations forces from Australia , Canada, Denmark , France , Germany, and Norway participated. Iraq takes center stage With the ouster of the Taliban and al-Qaeda, the international focus shifted to reconstruction and nation-building efforts in Afghanistan. In April 2002 Bush announced a “ Marshall Plan ” for Afghanistan in a speech at the Virginia Military Institute , promising substantial financial assistance. But from the start, development efforts in Afghanistan were inadequately funded, as attention had turned among U.S. officials to the looming confrontation in Iraq. Between 2001 and 2009, just over $38 billion in humanitarian and reconstruction assistance to Afghanistan was appropriated by the U.S. Congress. More than half the money went to training and equipping Afghan security forces, and the remainder represented a fraction of the amount that experts said would be required to develop a country that had consistently ranked near the bottom of global human development indices. The aid program was also bedeviled by waste and by confusion over whether civilian or military authorities had responsibility for leading education, health, agriculture, and other development projects. Despite military commitments from dozens of U.S. allies, the United States initially argued against allowing the other foreign forces—operating as the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF)—to deploy beyond the Kabul area. That choice was directed by the Pentagon , which insisted on a “light footprint” out of concern that Afghanistan would become a drag on U.S. resources as attention shifted to Iraq ( see Iraq War ). When ISAF did begin to venture beyond Kabul, its efforts were hampered by the “caveats” of its component countries—restrictions that kept all but a handful of the militaries from actively engaging in the fight against the Taliban and al-Qaeda. The force, overseen by the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) in the organization’s first mission outside Europe, was also hamstrung by a lack of troops as international commitments to Afghanistan flagged. The United States consistently represented the largest foreign force in Afghanistan, and it bore the heaviest losses. By spring 2010 more than 1,000 U.S. troops had been killed in Afghanistan, while the British troops suffered some 300 deaths and the Canadians some 150. Both Britain and Canada stationed their troops in Afghanistan’s south, where fighting had been most intense. More than 20 other countries also lost troops during the war, though many—such as Germany and Italy—chose to focus their forces in the north and the west, where the insurgency was less potent. As the fighting dragged on and casualties escalated, the war lost popularity in many Western countries, creating domestic political pressure to keep troops out of harm’s way or to pull them out altogether. Initially, the war appeared to have been won with relative ease. On May 1, 2003, U.S. Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld announced an end to “major combat” in Afghanistan. On the same day, aboard the aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln , President Bush announced that “major combat operations in Iraq have ended.” At that time, there were 8,000 U.S. troops in Afghanistan. The first democratic Afghan elections since the fall of the Taliban were held on October 9, 2004, with approximately 80 percent of registered voters turning out to give Karzai a full five-year term as president. Parliamentary elections were staged a year later, with dozens of women claiming seats set aside for them to ensure gender diversity . The 2004 constitution provided Afghanistan with a powerful central government and weak regional and local authorities—a structure that was in opposition to the country’s long-standing traditions. Despite vast powers under the constitution, Karzai was widely regarded as a weak leader who grew increasingly isolated as the war progressed. He survived several assassination attempts—including a September 2004 rocket attack that nearly struck a helicopter he was riding in—and security concerns kept him largely confined to the presidential palace in Kabul. Karzai’s government was beset by corruption, and efforts to build a national army and a police force were troubled from the start by inadequate international support and ethnic differences between Afghans. Taliban resurgence Beginning in 2005, violence climbed as the Taliban reasserted its presence with new tactics modeled on those being used by insurgents in Iraq. Whereas early in the war the Taliban had focused on battling U.S. and NATO forces in open combat—a strategy that largely failed to inflict significant damage—their adoption of the use of suicide bombings and buried bombs, known as IEDs ( improvised explosive device s), began to cause heavy casualties. Between January 2005 and August 2006, Afghanistan endured 64 suicide attacks—a tactic that had been virtually unknown in the country’s history before then. At first the attacks caused relatively few casualties, but as training and the availability of high-powered explosives increased, the death toll began to climb: in one particularly vicious attack in November 2007, at least 70 people—many of them children—were killed as a parliamentary delegation visited the northern town of Baghlan . Less than a year later, a bombing at the Indian embassy in Kabul killed more than 50; the Afghan government accused elements of Pakistan’s intelligence service of complicity in the attack, a charge Pakistan denied. Afghanistan War U.S. special operations forces conducting a mounted combat patrol in search of Taliban fighters in Helmand province, Afghanistan, April 2007. The Taliban’s resurgence corresponded with a rise in anti-American and anti-Western sentiment among Afghans. Those feelings were nurtured by the sluggish pace of reconstruction, allegations of prisoner abuse at U.S. detention facilities, widespread corruption in the Afghan government, and civilian casualties caused by U.S. and NATO bombings. In May 2006 a U.S. military vehicle crashed and killed several Afghans, an event that sparked violent anti-American riots in Kabul—the worst since the war began. Later that year NATO took command of the war across the country; American officials said that the United States would play a lesser role and that the face of the war would become increasingly international. This shift reflected the greater need for U.S. troops and resources in Iraq, where sectarian warfare was reaching alarming levels. By contrast, the war in Afghanistan was still regarded in Washington as a relative success. For commanders on the ground in Afghanistan, however, it was apparent that the Taliban intended to escalate its campaign, launching more frequent attacks and intensifying its fund-raising from wealthy individuals and groups in the Persian Gulf . Another source of money was Afghanistan’s resurgent opium industry. International pressure had forced the Taliban to curb poppy cultivation during their final year in power, but after their removal in 2001 the opium industry made a comeback, with revenues in some areas of the country benefiting the insurgency. Western-backed campaigns to eliminate poppy cultivation or to encourage farmers to grow other crops had little discernible impact; Afghanistan soon became the supplier of over 90 percent of the world’s opium. Quick Facts Date: December 2001 - 2014 The United States, meanwhile, had had only limited success in killing or capturing Taliban commanders. In early 2007, Mullah Obaidullah Akhund—the Taliban’s number three leader—was captured in Pakistan, and months later Mullah Dadullah—the Taliban’s top military commander—was killed in fighting with U.S. forces. But those were the exceptions. Top insurgent leaders remained at large, many of them in the tribal regions of Pakistan that adjoin Afghanistan. This reality prompted the United States to begin targeting insurgent leaders who lived in Pakistan with missiles fired from remotely piloted drones . The CIA program of targeted killings was publicly denied by U.S. officials but was widely acknowledged in private. Pakistani officials in turn denounced the strikes in public but privately approved of them as long as civilian casualties were limited. The United States repeatedly threatened to expand its drone strikes beyond Pakistan’s tribal areas and into regions such as Balochistān if Pakistan did not demonstrate greater cooperation in battling the Taliban, a group it had long fostered.
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(more) # Afghanistan War 2001–2014 Homework Help Written by [Griff Witte London bureau chief, Washington Post.](https://www.britannica.com/contributor/Griff-Witte/7832094) Griff Witte Fact-checked by [Britannica Editors Encyclopaedia Britannica's editors oversee subject areas in which they have extensive knowledge, whether from years of experience gained by working on that content or via study for an advanced degree....](https://www.britannica.com/editor/The-Editors-of-Encyclopaedia-Britannica/4419) Britannica Editors Last updated Apr. 7, 2026 •[History](https://www.britannica.com/event/Afghanistan-War/additional-info#history) ![Britannica AI Icon](https://cdn.britannica.com/mendel-resources/3-178/images/chatbot/star-ai.svg?v=3.178.5) Britannica AI Ask Anything Quick Summary Table of Contents Table of Contents Quick Summary Ask Anything Top Questions ### What was the cause of the Afghanistan War? The cause of the Afghanistan War was the [September 11 attacks](https://www.britannica.com/event/September-11-attacks). U.S. and NATO forces responded to the attacks by invading Afghanistan in an attempt to oust the Taliban and dismantle al-Qaeda. ### What were the three phases of the Afghanistan War? The three phases were: toppling the Taliban (2001), defeating the Taliban militarily and rebuilding Afghan institutions (2002-08), and implementing a counterinsurgency strategy with increased U.S. troops (2008-14). ### What was the outcome of the U.S. troop surge in Afghanistan under Obama? The troop surge led to an increase in U.S. combat deaths and a temporary escalation in the war effort, but ultimately failed to achieve lasting peace or stability in Afghanistan. ### How many NATO troops were killed during the Afghanistan War? 3,486 NATO troops were killed by the end of major combat operations in December 2014. ### What was the impact of the Afghanistan War on civilians? At least 47,000 Afghan civilians were killed, tens of thousands died from indirect causes, and millions were displaced internally or fled to neighboring countries. ## News • [Former Australian soldier charged with committing 5 war crime murders in Afghanistan](https://www.britannica.com/news/1686268/b428075a9980783863a8bcb7c70fb989) • Apr. 7, 2026, 6:20 AM ET (AP) Show less Afghanistan War, international conflict in [Afghanistan](https://www.britannica.com/place/Afghanistan) beginning in 2001 that was triggered by the [September 11 attacks](https://www.britannica.com/event/September-11-attacks) and consisted of three phases. The first phase—toppling the [Taliban](https://www.britannica.com/topic/Taliban) (the ultraconservative political and religious faction that ruled Afghanistan and provided sanctuary for [al-Qaeda](https://www.britannica.com/topic/al-Qaeda), perpetrators of the September 11 attacks)—was brief, lasting just two months. The second phase, from 2002 until 2008, was marked by a [U.S.](https://www.britannica.com/topic/history-of-United-States) strategy of defeating the Taliban militarily and rebuilding core institutions of the [Afghan](https://www.britannica.com/topic/Pashtun) state. The third phase, a turn to classic counterinsurgency doctrine, began in 2008 and accelerated with U.S. Pres. [Barack Obama](https://www.britannica.com/biography/Barack-Obama)’s 2009 decision to temporarily increase the U.S. troop presence in Afghanistan. The larger force was used to [implement](https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/implement) a strategy of protecting the population from Taliban attacks and supporting efforts to reintegrate insurgents into Afghan society. The strategy came coupled with a timetable for the withdrawal of the foreign forces from Afghanistan; beginning in 2011, security responsibilities would be gradually handed over to the Afghan military and police. The new approach largely failed to achieve its aims. Insurgent attacks and civilian casualties remained stubbornly high, while many of the Afghan military and police units taking over security duties appeared to be ill-prepared to hold off the Taliban. By the time the U.S. and [NATO](https://www.britannica.com/topic/North-Atlantic-Treaty-Organization) combat mission formally ended in December 2014, the 13-year Afghanistan War had become the longest [war](https://www.britannica.com/topic/war) ever fought by the [United States](https://www.britannica.com/place/United-States). American military [casualties](https://www.britannica.com/dictionary/casualties) included some 2,400 service members killed and some 20,700 others wounded. ## Prelude to the September 11 attacks [![Soviet invasion of Afghanistan](https://cdn.britannica.com/79/134279-050-1B91C96F/vehicle-Soviet-civilians-group-invasion-Afghanistan-December-1979.jpg?w=300)](https://cdn.britannica.com/79/134279-050-1B91C96F/vehicle-Soviet-civilians-group-invasion-Afghanistan-December-1979.jpg) [Soviet invasion of Afghanistan](https://cdn.britannica.com/79/134279-050-1B91C96F/vehicle-Soviet-civilians-group-invasion-Afghanistan-December-1979.jpg)A Soviet armoured vehicle rolling past a group of civilians during the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan, December 1979. (more) The joint U.S. and [British](https://www.britannica.com/topic/history-of-United-Kingdom) invasion of Afghanistan in late 2001 was preceded by over two decades of war in Afghanistan (see [Afghan War](https://www.britannica.com/event/Afghan-War)). On December 24, 1979, Soviet tanks rumbled across the [Amu Darya](https://www.britannica.com/place/Amu-Darya) River and into Afghanistan, ostensibly to restore stability following a coup that brought to power a pair of Marxist-Leninist political groups—the People’s (Khalq) Party and the Banner (Parcham) Party. But the Soviet presence touched off a nationwide rebellion by fighters—known as the [mujahideen](https://www.britannica.com/topic/mujahideen-Afghani-rebels)—who drew upon [Islam](https://www.britannica.com/topic/Islam) as a uniting source of inspiration. These fighters won extensive covert backing from [Pakistan](https://www.britannica.com/place/Pakistan), [Saudi Arabia](https://www.britannica.com/place/Saudi-Arabia), and the United States and were joined in their fight by foreign volunteers (who soon formed a network, known as [al-Qaeda](https://www.britannica.com/topic/al-Qaeda), to coordinate their efforts). The [guerrilla war](https://www.britannica.com/topic/guerrilla-warfare) against the Soviet forces led to their departure in 1989. In the Soviets’ absence, the [mujahideen](https://www.britannica.com/topic/mujahideen-Islam) ousted Afghanistan’s Soviet-backed government and established a transitional government. The mujahideen were politically fragmented, however, and in 1994 armed conflict [escalated](https://www.britannica.com/dictionary/escalated). The Taliban emerged and in 1996 seized [Kabul](https://www.britannica.com/place/Kabul). It instituted a severe interpretation of [Islamic law](https://www.britannica.com/topic/sharia) that, for example, forbade female education and prescribed the severing of hands, or even [execution](https://www.britannica.com/topic/capital-punishment), as punishment for petty crimes. That same year, [al-Qaeda](https://www.britannica.com/topic/al-Qaeda) leader [Osama bin Laden](https://www.britannica.com/biography/Osama-bin-Laden) was welcomed to Afghanistan (having been expelled from Sudan) and established his organization’s headquarters there. With al-Qaeda’s help, the Taliban won control of over 90 percent of Afghan territory by the summer of 2001. On September 9 of that year, al-Qaeda hit men carried out the assassination of famed mujahideen leader Ahmad Shah Masoud, who at the time was leading the [Northern Alliance](https://www.britannica.com/topic/Northern-Alliance) (a loose coalition of mujahideen militias that maintained control of a small section of northern Afghanistan) as it battled the Taliban and who had unsuccessfully sought greater U.S. backing for his efforts. ## The September 11 attacks and the [U.S.](https://www.britannica.com/topic/history-of-United-States)\-[British](https://www.britannica.com/topic/history-of-United-Kingdom) invasion [![Mohammad Omar](https://cdn.britannica.com/67/184667-050-9762BCAC/Mohammad-Omar.jpg?w=300)](https://cdn.britannica.com/67/184667-050-9762BCAC/Mohammad-Omar.jpg) [Mohammad Omar](https://cdn.britannica.com/67/184667-050-9762BCAC/Mohammad-Omar.jpg) (more) The hijacking and crashing of four U.S. jetliners on September 11, 2001, brought instant attention to Afghanistan. The plot had been hatched by al-Qaeda, and some of the 19 hijackers had trained in Afghanistan. In the aftermath of the attacks, the administration of U.S. Pres. [George W. Bush](https://www.britannica.com/biography/George-W-Bush) coalesced around a strategy of first ousting the Taliban from Afghanistan and dismantling al-Qaeda, though others contemplated actions in [Iraq](https://www.britannica.com/place/Iraq), including long-standing plans for toppling Pres. [Saddam Hussein](https://www.britannica.com/biography/Saddam-Hussein). Bush demanded that Taliban leader Mullah [Mohammed Omar](https://www.britannica.com/biography/Mohammad-Omar) “deliver to \[the\] United States authorities all the leaders of al-Qaeda who hide in your land,” and when Omar refused, U.S. officials began [implementing](https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/implementing) a plan for war. [![Remembering the 9/11 attacks](https://cdn.britannica.com/08/224308-138-8A7E507D/20th-anniversary-September-11-terrorism-attacks-United-States.jpg?w=800&h=450&c=crop)](https://www.britannica.com/video/20th-anniversary-September-11-terrorism-attacks-United-States/-258434) Remembering the 9/11 attacksLearn more about how the September 11 attacks were remembered in 2021. (more) [See all videos for this article](https://www.britannica.com/event/Afghanistan-War/images-videos) The campaign in Afghanistan started covertly on September 26, with a [Central Intelligence Agency](https://www.britannica.com/topic/Central-Intelligence-Agency) (CIA) team known as Jawbreaker arriving in the country and, working with anti-Taliban allies, initiating a strategy for overthrowing the regime. U.S. officials hoped that by partnering with the Afghans they could avoid [deploying](https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/deploying) a large force to Afghanistan. Pentagon officials were especially concerned that the United States not be drawn into a protracted occupation of Afghanistan, as had occurred with the Soviets more than two decades prior. The United States relied primarily on the [Northern Alliance](https://www.britannica.com/topic/Northern-Alliance), which had just lost Massoud but had regrouped under other commanders, including [Tajik](https://www.britannica.com/topic/Tajik-people) leader Mohammed Fahim and Abdul Rashid Dostum, an [Uzbek](https://www.britannica.com/topic/Uzbek-people). The Americans also teamed with anti-Taliban [Pashtuns](https://www.britannica.com/topic/Pashtun) in southern Afghanistan, including a little-known tribal leader named [Hamid Karzai](https://www.britannica.com/biography/Hamid-Karzai). [![Civil War era cannon overlooks Kennesaw Mountain National Battle. (military, artillery, American history)](https://cdn.britannica.com/27/273327-131-76BD5EF0/civil-war-cannon-overlooks-keneesaw-mountain-national-battle.jpg) Britannica Quiz Pick Your Battles Quiz](https://www.britannica.com/quiz/pick-your-battles-quiz) [![Afghanistan: U.S. Special Forces and Northern Alliance](https://cdn.britannica.com/77/125677-050-B87B02F8/US-Special-Forces-members-Northern-Alliance-Afghanistan-November-12-2001.jpg?w=300)](https://cdn.britannica.com/77/125677-050-B87B02F8/US-Special-Forces-members-Northern-Alliance-Afghanistan-November-12-2001.jpg) [Afghanistan: U.S. Special Forces and Northern Alliance](https://cdn.britannica.com/77/125677-050-B87B02F8/US-Special-Forces-members-Northern-Alliance-Afghanistan-November-12-2001.jpg)U.S. Special Forces working with members of the Northern Alliance in Afghanistan, November 12, 2001. (more) The CIA team was soon joined by U.S. and British special forces [contingents](https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/contingents), and together they provided arms, equipment, and advice to the Afghans. They also helped coordinate targeting for the air campaign, which began on October 7, 2001, with U.S. and British war planes pounding Taliban targets, thus marking the public start of Operation Enduring Freedom. In late October, [Northern Alliance](https://www.britannica.com/topic/Northern-Alliance) forces began to overtake a series of towns formerly held by the Taliban. The forces worked with U.S. assistance, but they defied U.S. wishes when, on November 13, they marched into Kabul as the Taliban retreated without a fight. [Kandahar](https://www.britannica.com/place/Kandahar), the largest city in southern Afghanistan and the Taliban’s spiritual home, fell on December 6, marking the end of Taliban power. It had been besieged by a force led by Karzai that moved in from the north and one commanded by Gul Agha Sherzai that advanced from the south; both operated with heavy assistance from the [United States](https://www.britannica.com/place/United-States). As the Taliban leadership retreated into Afghanistan’s rural areas and across the border to [Pakistan](https://www.britannica.com/place/Pakistan), anti-Taliban figures [convened](https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/convened) at a [United Nations](https://www.britannica.com/topic/United-Nations) (UN)-sponsored conference in Bonn, [Germany](https://www.britannica.com/place/Germany). With behind-the-scenes maneuvering by the United States, [Karzai](https://www.britannica.com/biography/Hamid-Karzai) was selected to lead the country on an [interim](https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/interim) basis. Explore Britannica Premium\! Go beyond the basics with trusted, in-depth knowledge for professionals, students, and lifelong learners. [SUBSCRIBE](https://premium.britannica.com/premium-membership/?utm_source=premium&utm_medium=inline-cta&utm_campaign=basics-2026) ![Penguin, ship, mountain, atlas](https://cdn.britannica.com/marketing/inline-left.webp) ![shohei ohtani, plants, andy wharhol art](https://cdn.britannica.com/marketing/inline-right.webp) ![Mobile](https://cdn.britannica.com/marketing/inline-mobile.webp?w=400) An intensive manhunt for Omar, [bin Laden](https://www.britannica.com/biography/Osama-bin-Laden), and al-Qaeda deputy chief [Ayman al-Zawahiri](https://www.britannica.com/biography/Ayman-al-Zawahiri) was undertaken. Prior to the killing of bin Laden by U.S. forces in 2011 (see below), the Americans were believed to have come closest to bin Laden in the December 2001 battle of Tora Bora (bin Laden’s mountain stronghold). But bin Laden was thought to have managed to have slipped into Pakistan with the help of Afghan and Pakistani forces that were supposedly helping the Americans. Critics later questioned why the U.S. military had allowed Afghan forces to lead the assault on the cave complex at Tora Bora rather than doing it themselves. (Indeed, Democratic presidential candidate Sen. [John Kerry](https://www.britannica.com/biography/John-Kerry) made this [criticism](https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/criticism) repeatedly during the 2004 general election campaign.) [Al-Qaeda](https://www.britannica.com/topic/al-Qaeda) subsequently reestablished its base of operations in the tribal areas that form Pakistan’s northwest border with Afghanistan. Omar and his top Taliban lieutenants settled in and around the Pakistani city of [Quetta](https://www.britannica.com/place/Quetta-Pakistan), in the remote southwestern province of [Balochistān](https://www.britannica.com/place/Balochistan). One of the final major battles of the first phase of the war came in March 2002 with Operation Anaconda in the eastern province of Paktia, which involved U.S. and Afghan forces fighting some 800 al-Qaeda and Taliban militants. The operation also marked the entrance of other countries’ troops into the war: [special operations forces](https://www.britannica.com/topic/special-operations-warfare) from [Australia](https://www.britannica.com/place/Australia), Canada, [Denmark](https://www.britannica.com/place/Denmark), [France](https://www.britannica.com/place/France), Germany, and [Norway](https://www.britannica.com/place/Norway) participated. ## Iraq takes center stage With the ouster of the Taliban and al-Qaeda, the international focus shifted to reconstruction and nation-building efforts in Afghanistan. In April 2002 Bush announced a “[Marshall Plan](https://www.britannica.com/event/Marshall-Plan)” for Afghanistan in a speech at the [Virginia Military Institute](https://www.britannica.com/topic/Virginia-Military-Institute), promising substantial financial assistance. But from the start, development efforts in Afghanistan were inadequately funded, as attention had turned among U.S. officials to the looming [confrontation](https://www.britannica.com/dictionary/confrontation) in Iraq. Between 2001 and 2009, just over \$38 billion in humanitarian and reconstruction assistance to Afghanistan was appropriated by the U.S. Congress. More than half the money went to training and equipping Afghan security forces, and the remainder represented a fraction of the amount that experts said would be required to develop a country that had consistently ranked near the bottom of global [human development](https://www.britannica.com/science/human-development) indices. The aid program was also bedeviled by waste and by confusion over whether civilian or military authorities had responsibility for leading education, health, agriculture, and other development projects. Despite military commitments from dozens of U.S. allies, the United States initially argued against allowing the other foreign forces—operating as the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF)—to [deploy](https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/deploy) beyond the Kabul area. That choice was directed by the [Pentagon](https://www.britannica.com/topic/Pentagon), which insisted on a “light footprint” out of concern that Afghanistan would become a drag on U.S. resources as attention shifted to Iraq (see [Iraq War](https://www.britannica.com/event/Iraq-War)). When ISAF did begin to venture beyond Kabul, its efforts were hampered by the “caveats” of its component countries—restrictions that kept all but a handful of the militaries from actively engaging in the fight against the Taliban and al-Qaeda. The force, overseen by the [North Atlantic Treaty Organization](https://www.britannica.com/topic/North-Atlantic-Treaty-Organization) (NATO) in the organization’s first mission outside Europe, was also hamstrung by a lack of troops as international commitments to Afghanistan flagged. [![Kandahar, Afghanistan: Stephen Harper visiting troops](https://cdn.britannica.com/45/96945-050-94E34C4B/Stephen-Harper-troops-base-Afgh-Kandahar-Canadian.jpg?w=300)](https://cdn.britannica.com/45/96945-050-94E34C4B/Stephen-Harper-troops-base-Afgh-Kandahar-Canadian.jpg) [Kandahar, Afghanistan: Stephen Harper visiting troops](https://cdn.britannica.com/45/96945-050-94E34C4B/Stephen-Harper-troops-base-Afgh-Kandahar-Canadian.jpg)Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper addressing Canadian soldiers at their base in Kandahar, Afghanistan, March 2006. (more) The [United States](https://www.britannica.com/topic/history-of-United-States) consistently represented the largest foreign force in Afghanistan, and it [bore](https://www.britannica.com/dictionary/bore) the heaviest losses. By spring 2010 more than 1,000 [U.S.](https://www.britannica.com/topic/history-of-United-States) troops had been killed in Afghanistan, while the [British](https://www.britannica.com/topic/history-of-United-Kingdom) troops suffered some 300 deaths and the Canadians some 150. Both [Britain](https://www.britannica.com/place/United-Kingdom) and [Canada](https://www.britannica.com/place/Canada) stationed their troops in Afghanistan’s south, where fighting had been most intense. More than 20 other countries also lost troops during the war, though many—such as Germany and Italy—chose to focus their forces in the north and the west, where the insurgency was less potent. As the fighting dragged on and casualties escalated, the war lost popularity in many Western countries, creating domestic political pressure to keep troops out of harm’s way or to pull them out altogether. [![Iraq War: George W. Bush with sailors](https://cdn.britannica.com/50/115950-050-2E4CC383/Pres-sailors-George-W-Bush-USS-Abraham-May-1-2003.jpg?w=300)](https://cdn.britannica.com/50/115950-050-2E4CC383/Pres-sailors-George-W-Bush-USS-Abraham-May-1-2003.jpg) [Iraq War: George W. Bush with sailors](https://cdn.britannica.com/50/115950-050-2E4CC383/Pres-sailors-George-W-Bush-USS-Abraham-May-1-2003.jpg)Pres. George W. Bush with sailors aboard the USS Abraham Lincoln, May 1, 2003. (more) Initially, the war appeared to have been won with relative ease. On May 1, 2003, U.S. Secretary of Defense [Donald Rumsfeld](https://www.britannica.com/biography/Donald-Rumsfeld) announced an end to “major combat” in Afghanistan. On the same day, aboard the [aircraft carrier](https://www.britannica.com/technology/aircraft-carrier) USS Abraham Lincoln, President Bush announced that “major combat operations in Iraq have ended.” At that time, there were 8,000 U.S. troops in Afghanistan. The first democratic Afghan elections since the fall of the Taliban were held on October 9, 2004, with approximately 80 percent of registered voters turning out to give [Karzai](https://www.britannica.com/biography/Hamid-Karzai) a full five-year term as president. Parliamentary elections were staged a year later, with dozens of women claiming seats set aside for them to ensure gender [diversity](https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/diversity). The 2004 constitution provided Afghanistan with a powerful central government and weak regional and local authorities—a structure that was in opposition to the country’s long-standing traditions. [![Hamid Karzai](https://cdn.britannica.com/33/136433-050-A299184C/Hamid-Karzai-2004.jpg?w=300)](https://cdn.britannica.com/33/136433-050-A299184C/Hamid-Karzai-2004.jpg) [Hamid Karzai](https://cdn.britannica.com/33/136433-050-A299184C/Hamid-Karzai-2004.jpg)Hamid Karzai, 2004. (more) Despite vast powers under the constitution, Karzai was widely regarded as a weak leader who grew increasingly isolated as the war progressed. He survived several assassination attempts—including a September 2004 rocket attack that nearly struck a helicopter he was riding in—and security concerns kept him largely confined to the presidential palace in Kabul. Karzai’s government was beset by corruption, and efforts to build a national army and a police force were troubled from the start by [inadequate](https://www.britannica.com/dictionary/inadequate) international support and ethnic differences between Afghans. ## [Taliban](https://www.britannica.com/topic/Taliban) resurgence Beginning in 2005, violence climbed as the Taliban reasserted its presence with new tactics modeled on those being used by insurgents in Iraq. Whereas early in the war the Taliban had focused on battling U.S. and [NATO](https://www.britannica.com/topic/North-Atlantic-Treaty-Organization) forces in open combat—a strategy that largely failed to inflict significant damage—their adoption of the use of [suicide](https://www.britannica.com/topic/suicide) bombings and buried bombs, known as IEDs ([improvised explosive device](https://www.britannica.com/technology/improvised-explosive-device)s), began to cause heavy casualties. Between January 2005 and August 2006, Afghanistan endured 64 suicide attacks—a tactic that had been virtually unknown in the country’s history before then. At first the attacks caused relatively few casualties, but as training and the availability of high-powered explosives increased, the death toll began to climb: in one particularly vicious attack in November 2007, at least 70 people—many of them children—were killed as a parliamentary delegation visited the northern town of [Baghlan](https://www.britannica.com/place/Baghlan). Less than a year later, a bombing at the [Indian](https://www.britannica.com/topic/Indigenous-peoples-of-the-Americas) embassy in Kabul killed more than 50; the Afghan government accused elements of Pakistan’s intelligence service of complicity in the attack, a charge Pakistan denied. [![Afghanistan War](https://cdn.britannica.com/09/187809-050-13C72062/operations-forces-search-combat-patrol-fighters-Taliban-April-2007.jpg?w=300)](https://cdn.britannica.com/09/187809-050-13C72062/operations-forces-search-combat-patrol-fighters-Taliban-April-2007.jpg) [Afghanistan War](https://cdn.britannica.com/09/187809-050-13C72062/operations-forces-search-combat-patrol-fighters-Taliban-April-2007.jpg)U.S. special operations forces conducting a mounted combat patrol in search of Taliban fighters in Helmand province, Afghanistan, April 2007. (more) The Taliban’s resurgence corresponded with a rise in anti-American and anti-Western [sentiment](https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/sentiment) among Afghans. Those feelings were nurtured by the sluggish pace of reconstruction, allegations of prisoner abuse at U.S. detention facilities, widespread corruption in the Afghan government, and civilian casualties caused by U.S. and NATO bombings. In May 2006 a U.S. military vehicle crashed and killed several Afghans, an event that sparked violent anti-American riots in Kabul—the worst since the war began. Later that year NATO took command of the war across the country; American officials said that the United States would play a lesser role and that the face of the war would become increasingly international. This shift reflected the greater need for U.S. troops and resources in Iraq, where sectarian warfare was reaching alarming levels. By contrast, the war in Afghanistan was still regarded in Washington as a relative success. [![Helmand province, Afghanistan: eradication sweep of opium poppies](https://cdn.britannica.com/44/103744-050-2BC50D3D/policemen-Afghan-opium-poppies-eradication-sweep-Uruzgan-April-29.jpg?w=300)](https://cdn.britannica.com/44/103744-050-2BC50D3D/policemen-Afghan-opium-poppies-eradication-sweep-Uruzgan-April-29.jpg) [Helmand province, Afghanistan: eradication sweep of opium poppies](https://cdn.britannica.com/44/103744-050-2BC50D3D/policemen-Afghan-opium-poppies-eradication-sweep-Uruzgan-April-29.jpg)Afghan policemen destroying opium poppies during an eradication sweep in Helmand province, 2013. (more) For commanders on the ground in Afghanistan, however, it was apparent that the Taliban intended to [escalate](https://www.britannica.com/dictionary/escalate) its campaign, launching more frequent attacks and intensifying its fund-raising from wealthy individuals and groups in the [Persian Gulf](https://www.britannica.com/place/Persian-Gulf). Another source of money was Afghanistan’s resurgent [opium](https://www.britannica.com/science/opium) industry. International pressure had forced the Taliban to curb [poppy](https://www.britannica.com/plant/poppy) cultivation during their final year in power, but after their removal in 2001 the opium industry made a comeback, with revenues in some areas of the country benefiting the insurgency. Western-backed campaigns to eliminate poppy cultivation or to encourage farmers to grow other crops had little discernible impact; Afghanistan soon became the supplier of over 90 percent of the world’s opium. Quick Facts Date: December 2001 - 2014 (Show more) Participants: [Afghanistan](https://www.britannica.com/place/Afghanistan) [United States](https://www.britannica.com/place/United-States) [al-Qaeda](https://www.britannica.com/topic/al-Qaeda) [Taliban](https://www.britannica.com/topic/Taliban) (Show more) Context: [September 11 attacks](https://www.britannica.com/event/September-11-attacks) (Show more) Major Events: [Battle of Tora Bora](https://www.britannica.com/event/Battle-of-Tora-Bora) (Show more) Key People: [George W. Bush](https://www.britannica.com/biography/George-W-Bush) [Hamid Karzai](https://www.britannica.com/biography/Hamid-Karzai) [Barack Obama](https://www.britannica.com/biography/Barack-Obama) [Robert M. Gates](https://www.britannica.com/biography/Robert-M-Gates) [David Petraeus](https://www.britannica.com/biography/David-Petraeus) (Show more) On the Web: [Council on Foreign Relations - The U.S. War in Afghanistan](https://www.cfr.org/timelines/us-war-afghanistan) (Mar. 20, 2026) (Show more) [See all related content](https://www.britannica.com/facts/Afghanistan-War) Show More The United States, meanwhile, had had only limited success in killing or capturing Taliban commanders. In early 2007, Mullah Obaidullah Akhund—the Taliban’s number three leader—was captured in Pakistan, and months later Mullah Dadullah—the Taliban’s top military commander—was killed in fighting with U.S. forces. But those were the exceptions. Top [insurgent](https://www.britannica.com/dictionary/insurgent) leaders remained at large, many of them in the tribal regions of Pakistan that adjoin Afghanistan. This reality prompted the United States to begin targeting insurgent leaders who lived in [Pakistan](https://www.britannica.com/topic/history-of-Pakistan) with missiles fired from [remotely piloted drones](https://www.britannica.com/technology/unmanned-aerial-vehicle). The [CIA](https://www.britannica.com/topic/Central-Intelligence-Agency) program of targeted killings was publicly denied by U.S. officials but was widely acknowledged in private. Pakistani officials in turn denounced the strikes in public but privately approved of them as long as civilian casualties were limited. The United States repeatedly threatened to expand its [drone](https://www.britannica.com/dictionary/drone) strikes beyond Pakistan’s tribal areas and into regions such as Balochistān if Pakistan did not demonstrate greater cooperation in battling the Taliban, a group it had long fostered. ![Britannica AI Icon](https://cdn.britannica.com/mendel-resources/3-178/images/chatbot/star-ai.svg?v=3.178.5)Britannica AI chevron\_right Afghanistan War close [AI-generated answers](https://www.britannica.com/about-britannica-ai) from Britannica articles. AI makes mistakes, so verify using Britannica articles. # Obama and the U.S. troop surge [![Barack Obama, Hamid Karzai, and Asif Ali Zardari](https://cdn.britannica.com/01/131001-050-FA1C19E2/Pres-Barack-Obama-Hamid-Karzai-White-House-May-2009.jpg?w=300)1 of 2](https://cdn.britannica.com/01/131001-050-FA1C19E2/Pres-Barack-Obama-Hamid-Karzai-White-House-May-2009.jpg) [Barack Obama, Hamid Karzai, and Asif Ali Zardari](https://cdn.britannica.com/01/131001-050-FA1C19E2/Pres-Barack-Obama-Hamid-Karzai-White-House-May-2009.jpg)U.S. Pres. Barack Obama meeting at the White House with Pres. Hamid Karzai of Afghanistan and Pres. Asif Ali Zardari of Pakistan, May 2009. (more) [![Afghanistan War](https://cdn.britannica.com/11/131011-050-1FC0B531/man-Afghan-bicycle-security-patrol-dirt-road-2009.jpg?w=300)2 of 2](https://cdn.britannica.com/11/131011-050-1FC0B531/man-Afghan-bicycle-security-patrol-dirt-road-2009.jpg) [Afghanistan War](https://cdn.britannica.com/11/131011-050-1FC0B531/man-Afghan-bicycle-security-patrol-dirt-road-2009.jpg)An Afghan man riding a bicycle on a dirt road during a security patrol by U.S. Marines and Afghan soldiers in Helmand province, Afghanistan, 2009. (more) U.S. Pres. [Barack Obama](https://www.britannica.com/biography/Barack-Obama) went to the [White House](https://www.britannica.com/topic/White-House-Washington-DC) promising to focus attention and resources on the faltering [war](https://www.britannica.com/topic/war) effort in [Afghanistan](https://www.britannica.com/place/Afghanistan). On February 17, 2009, he approved sending an additional 17,000 U.S. troops, on top of the 36,000 U.S. troops and 32,000 [NATO](https://www.britannica.com/topic/North-Atlantic-Treaty-Organization) service members already there. Three months later Obama took the rare step of removing a commanding general from a theatre of war, replacing Gen. David McKiernan with Gen. [Stanley McChrystal](https://www.britannica.com/biography/Stanley-McChrystal). While McKiernan was shifting U.S. strategy in Afghanistan, Obama and other top officials had concluded that a more radical change was needed. McChrystal was brought in to [implement](https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/implement) a new strategy modeled after the surge strategy in Iraq—one in which U.S. forces would focus on protecting the population from insurgents rather than simply trying to kill large numbers of militants. The strategy also involved trying to persuade enemy fighters to defect and ultimately encouraging reconciliation between the Karzai government and [Taliban](https://www.britannica.com/topic/Taliban) leaders. [![Stanley McChrystal and Barack Obama](https://cdn.britannica.com/69/142169-050-861F0550/Stanley-McChrystal-Pres-Barack-Obama-2009.jpg?w=300)1 of 2](https://cdn.britannica.com/69/142169-050-861F0550/Stanley-McChrystal-Pres-Barack-Obama-2009.jpg) [Stanley McChrystal and Barack Obama](https://cdn.britannica.com/69/142169-050-861F0550/Stanley-McChrystal-Pres-Barack-Obama-2009.jpg)Stanley McChrystal (right) and U.S. Pres. Barack Obama, 2009. (more) [![Afghanistan War](https://cdn.britannica.com/16/131016-050-DC8183AF/soldier-hills-air-strike-Barge-Matal-Afghanistan-July-2009.jpg?w=300)2 of 2](https://cdn.britannica.com/16/131016-050-DC8183AF/soldier-hills-air-strike-Barge-Matal-Afghanistan-July-2009.jpg) [Afghanistan War](https://cdn.britannica.com/16/131016-050-DC8183AF/soldier-hills-air-strike-Barge-Matal-Afghanistan-July-2009.jpg)A U.S. soldier calling for an air strike on the hills surrounding Barge Matal in eastern Nūristān province, Afghanistan, July 2009. (more) Soon after assuming command, McChrystal concluded that he did not have enough troops to execute the new strategy, and in September 2009 he laid out his concerns in a [confidential](https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/confidential) report, which was subsequently leaked to the press. McChrystal predicted that the war would be lost within a year if there was not a significant troop surge. After an intensive [Afghan](https://www.britannica.com/topic/Pashtun) policy review—the second one by the Obama administration in less than a year—the president delivered a speech at the U.S. Military Academy at West Point on December 1 in which he announced a major escalation in the war effort, with 30,000 additional troops being [deployed](https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/deployed) to Afghanistan by the summer of 2010. The new strategy led to an increase in U.S. combat deaths; notably, during the first three months of 2010, U.S. deaths were approximately twice what they had been over the same period in 2009. The surge in U.S. forces was accompanied by a dramatic escalation of U.S. [drone](https://www.britannica.com/art/drone-music) strikes in Pakistan—one of which killed [Pakistani Taliban](https://www.britannica.com/topic/Pakistani-Taliban) leader Baitullah Mehsud. But the [CIA](https://www.britannica.com/topic/Central-Intelligence-Agency) also paid a price in late December 2009 when an [al-Qaeda](https://www.britannica.com/topic/al-Qaeda) double agent detonated a [suicide bomb](https://www.britannica.com/topic/suicide-bombing) at a Bagram air base in the eastern province of Khost, killing seven from the agency. [![Afghanistan War](https://cdn.britannica.com/27/143127-050-4F23768B/officer-patrol-Afghan-National-Police-troops-Afghanistan-2010.jpg?w=300)](https://cdn.britannica.com/27/143127-050-4F23768B/officer-patrol-Afghan-National-Police-troops-Afghanistan-2010.jpg) [Afghanistan War](https://cdn.britannica.com/27/143127-050-4F23768B/officer-patrol-Afghan-National-Police-troops-Afghanistan-2010.jpg)An Afghan National Police officer leading U.S. troops on a patrol in Khost province, Afghanistan, 2010. (more) In early 2010 the surge began with an assault on the insurgent-held town of Marja, in the southern province of Helmand. U.S. [Marines](https://www.britannica.com/topic/United-States-Marine-Corps) achieved a relatively quick victory, even as McChrystal planned a more ambitious offensive in [Kandahar](https://www.britannica.com/place/Kandahar). Obama visited Afghanistan for the first time as president on March 28, delivering a stern message to Karzai that he needed to clean up corruption in his government. [Karzai](https://www.britannica.com/biography/Hamid-Karzai) had won a new five-year term in an August 2009 election that was tainted by widespread allegations of fraud. Karzai vowed in his inaugural address to stamp out corruption in his government, but there were few signs in the short term that he had done so. Meanwhile, Karzai announced that he would attempt to [reconcile](https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/reconcile) with the Taliban; he repeatedly invited [Mullah Omar](https://www.britannica.com/biography/Mohammad-Omar) to meet with him, but the Taliban leader steadfastly refused. Under intense pressure from the [United States](https://www.britannica.com/place/United-States), Karzai lashed out in April 2010 and even threatened to join the Taliban if the international [community](https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/community) did not stop meddling in Afghan affairs. Troubled by the comments, the White House threatened to revoke Karzai’s invitation to meet with Obama in Washington, [D.C.](https://www.britannica.com/place/Washington-DC), but the visit occurred as scheduled, with Karzai and Obama at least outwardly making efforts to mend their relationship. [Pakistan](https://www.britannica.com/topic/history-of-Pakistan) offered to mediate Afghan peace talks, but Pakistan’s ultimate attitude toward the Taliban remained a matter of great controversy. In February 2010, Pakistani security forces arrested the Afghan Taliban’s second-in-command, Mullah [Abdul Ghani Baradar](https://www.britannica.com/biography/Mullah-Abdul-Ghani-Baradar), a move interpreted by many U.S. officials as a reflection of Pakistan’s desire to work with the U.S. and Afghan governments to stem the group’s influence. But others, including Kai Eide, the former top UN official in [Kabul](https://www.britannica.com/place/Kabul), said Baradar had been a leading Taliban proponent of reconciliation and that the arrest was intended to scuttle efforts to end the war through a political, rather than military, solution. [![Petraeus, David](https://cdn.britannica.com/10/187810-050-922722A0/David-Petraeus-Kandahar-Afghanistan-July-2010.jpg?w=300)](https://cdn.britannica.com/10/187810-050-922722A0/David-Petraeus-Kandahar-Afghanistan-July-2010.jpg) [Petraeus, David](https://cdn.britannica.com/10/187810-050-922722A0/David-Petraeus-Kandahar-Afghanistan-July-2010.jpg)Gen. David Petraeus (left), Kandahār, Afghanistan, July 2010. (more) The military command structure in Afghanistan abruptly changed again in June 2010, when Obama replaced [McChrystal](https://www.britannica.com/biography/Stanley-McChrystal) with Gen. [David Petraeus](https://www.britannica.com/biography/David-Petraeus) after McChrystal and some of his aides made [disparaging](https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/disparaging) remarks to a [Rolling Stone](https://www.britannica.com/topic/Rolling-Stone) magazine reporter about Obama and other top administration officials, including Vice Pres. [Joe Biden](https://www.britannica.com/biography/Joe-Biden), National Security Advisor James L. Jones, and special representative to Afghanistan [Richard Holbrooke](https://www.britannica.com/biography/Richard-Holbrooke). The comments underscored festering tensions between U.S. military commanders in Afghanistan and some members of the Obama administration’s civilian leadership. In explaining the change of command, Obama said, “I welcome debate among my team, but I won’t tolerate division.” Despite the switch, Obama vowed that U.S. strategy in Afghanistan would not change. Petraeus, considered the leading architect of counterinsurgency doctrine in the U.S. military, was expected to continue McChrystal’s emphasis on protecting the Afghan population from insurgents, building Afghan government institutions, and seeking to limit civilian casualties. [Griff Witte](https://www.britannica.com/contributor/Griff-Witte/7832094) [The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica](https://www.britannica.com/editor/The-Editors-of-Encyclopaedia-Britannica/4419) [![Julian Assange](https://cdn.britannica.com/35/145635-050-4B4D1C91/Julian-Assange-military-documents-WikiLeaks-Australian-press-July-26-2010.jpg?w=300)](https://cdn.britannica.com/35/145635-050-4B4D1C91/Julian-Assange-military-documents-WikiLeaks-Australian-press-July-26-2010.jpg) [Julian Assange](https://cdn.britannica.com/35/145635-050-4B4D1C91/Julian-Assange-military-documents-WikiLeaks-Australian-press-July-26-2010.jpg)WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange at a press conference, 2010. (more) Shortly after McChrystal’s dismissal, a [cache](https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/cache) of classified documents relating to the Afghanistan War was published online by the whistle-blowing journalistic organization [WikiLeaks](https://www.britannica.com/topic/WikiLeaks) and prereleased to several newspapers, including [The New York Times](https://www.britannica.com/topic/The-New-York-Times), [Der Spiegel](https://www.britannica.com/topic/Der-Spiegel-German-magazine), and [The Guardian](https://www.britannica.com/topic/The-Guardian-British-newspaper). The information was mainly in the form of raw intelligence gathered between 2004 and 2009, and WikiLeaks cumulatively termed it the “Afghan War Diary.” It detailed previously unreported civilian deaths, indicated that a U.S. special forces unit was tasked with capturing or killing the persons on a list of insurgent leaders, revealed that the Taliban had employed heat-seeking missiles against aircraft, and suggested that the Pakistani intelligence service had been working with Taliban forces in spite of substantial U.S. aid to Pakistan for its assistance in combating militants. The U.S. government criticized the disclosure as a security [breach](https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/breach) but stated that the substance of the leak corresponded with other known intelligence and did not contain new information. [![U.S. government officials during the Osama bin Laden mission](https://cdn.britannica.com/02/149702-050-81E09374/Pres-Robert-M-Gates-Barack-Obama-Hillary-May-2011.jpg?w=300)1 of 2](https://cdn.britannica.com/02/149702-050-81E09374/Pres-Robert-M-Gates-Barack-Obama-Hillary-May-2011.jpg) [U.S. government officials during the Osama bin Laden mission](https://cdn.britannica.com/02/149702-050-81E09374/Pres-Robert-M-Gates-Barack-Obama-Hillary-May-2011.jpg)U.S. Pres. Barack Obama (seated second from left) and various other government officials—including Vice Pres. Joe Biden (seated left), Secretary of Defense Robert M. Gates (seated right), and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton (seated second from right)—receiving updates in the Situation Room of the White House during the Osama bin Laden mission, May 2011. (more) [![Watch the speech by U.S. Pres. Barack Obama announcing the killing of Osama bin Laden by U.S. forces, May 2011](https://cdn.britannica.com/00/149700-138-F86AC30C/Pres-forces-Barack-Obama-Osama-bin-Laden-May-2011.jpg?w=800&h=450&c=crop)2 of 2](https://www.britannica.com/video/Pres-forces-Barack-Obama-Osama-bin-Laden-May-2011/-156230) Watch the speech by U.S. Pres. Barack Obama announcing the killing of Osama bin Laden by U.S. forces, May 2011Pres. Barack Obama announcing that U.S. forces had killed Osama bin Laden, May 2011. (more) [See all videos for this article](https://www.britannica.com/event/Afghanistan-War/images-videos) Developments with some of the primary objectives of the war—apprehending key al-Qaeda leaders and dealing with the Taliban—were front and center in 2011. Nearly 10 years after eluding capture at Tora Bora in Afghanistan, bin Laden was [killed by U.S. forces](https://www.britannica.com/event/Killing-of-Osama-bin-Laden) on May 2, 2011, after U.S. intelligence located him living in a secure [compound](https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/compound) in [Abbottabad](https://www.britannica.com/place/Abbottabad), Pakistan. The operation, a raid carried out by a small team that reached the compound by [helicopter](https://www.britannica.com/technology/helicopter), led to a firefight in which bin Laden died. The next month U.S. Secretary of Defense [Robert Gates](https://www.britannica.com/biography/Robert-M-Gates) confirmed for the first time that the U.S. government was holding reconciliation talks with the Taliban, although he stressed that efforts to negotiate an end to the conflict were still in the preliminary stages. Then, on June 22, Obama announced an [accelerated](https://www.britannica.com/dictionary/accelerated) timetable for the withdrawal of U.S. forces from Afghanistan, saying that the United States had largely achieved its goals by disrupting al-Qaeda’s operations and killing many of its leaders. The plan called for the number of U.S. troops in Afghanistan to be reduced by as many as 30,000 within a year, in preparation for a complete withdrawal of combat forces by the end of 2014. Hours after Obama’s announcement, French Pres. [Nicolas Sarkozy](https://www.britannica.com/biography/Nicolas-Sarkozy) announced that [France](https://www.britannica.com/place/France) would also begin to withdraw its 4,000 soldiers from Afghanistan. In September, efforts to end the long-running conflict suffered a setback when Burhanuddin Rabbani, a former Afghan president and a key figure in [reconciliation](https://www.britannica.com/dictionary/reconciliation) negotiations, was assassinated by a [suicide](https://www.britannica.com/topic/suicide) bomber. A series of incidents in early 2012 heightened tensions between the U.S. and the Afghan government and provoked public outrage. In mid-January, a video showing U.S. Marines urinating on dead Afghans circulated in the media, drawing apologies from U.S. officials. Weeks later, Afghans rioted and held protests over reports that U.S. soldiers had disposed of copies of the Qurʾān at a military base by burning them. Then, on March 11, a U.S. soldier allegedly left an American base near Panjwai and broke into several homes, shooting dead 17 Afghans, mostly women and children. The incident provoked [widespread](https://www.britannica.com/dictionary/widespread) demonstrations and a sharp condemnation from Karzai. Days later, the Taliban suspended participation in talks with the United States and the Afghan government. Later that year [NATO](https://www.britannica.com/topic/North-Atlantic-Treaty-Organization)’s efforts to train and equip the Afghan army and police were hampered by an increase in attacks in which Afghan soldiers and police turned their weapons on NATO soldiers. These attacks forced NATO troops to institute more rigorous screening procedures and to suspend the training of certain units. Meanwhile, in early 2012, U.S. and Afghan negotiators reached agreements regarding two issues that had been sources of friction between the Obama and Karzai administrations. The first agreement, signed in March, set a six-month timetable for the transfer of Afghan detainees held by the U.S. military to Afghan custody. The second agreement, signed in April, established that Afghan forces would oversee and lead night raids to apprehend or kill Taliban leaders. These raids, previously led by U.S. special forces, had since 2009 become a major component of the campaign against the Taliban. Afghan leaders, however, had long objected that the raids violated Afghan [sovereignty](https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/sovereignty) and that surprise invasions of private homes ultimately alienated [public opinion](https://www.britannica.com/topic/public-opinion) and increased support for the insurgency. ## The U.S. withdrawal and the return of the Taliban The agreements in March and April concerning detainees and night raids cleared the way for the United States and Afghanistan to reach a further agreement in May outlining a framework for economic and security cooperation between the two countries following the withdrawal of NATO combat troops in 2014. The agreement expressed the United States’ commitment to continuing military support for the Afghan government after 2014, although it left unanswered the question of whether or not some U.S. and NATO forces would remain in Afghanistan as trainers and advisers after 2014. That was to be determined by a separate pact, the Bilateral Security Agreement. Even though the presence of foreign troops in Afghanistan remained deeply unpopular, many Afghans feared that a sudden withdrawal would allow the country to slip into civil war or [chaos](https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/chaos). [![Ashraf Ghani](https://cdn.britannica.com/33/180833-050-89B0343D/declaration-Afg-Kabul-candidates-hands-Abdullah-government-August-8-2014.jpg?w=300)](https://cdn.britannica.com/33/180833-050-89B0343D/declaration-Afg-Kabul-candidates-hands-Abdullah-government-August-8-2014.jpg) [Ashraf Ghani](https://cdn.britannica.com/33/180833-050-89B0343D/declaration-Afg-Kabul-candidates-hands-Abdullah-government-August-8-2014.jpg)Afghan politician Ashraf Ghani (right) shaking hands with his rival for the Afghan presidency, Abdullah Abdullah, August 2014. (more) The issue of leaving foreign troops in the country after the end of NATO combat operations remained unresolved until the last half of 2014. Karzai—by then in the last months of his presidency—had refused to sign the Bilateral Security Agreement before leaving office, and the election of his successor was delayed by a lengthy recount. In late September 2014 Ashraf Ghani was finally inaugurated as president and immediately signed the Bilateral Security Agreement. The U.S. and NATO formally ended their combat mission in Afghanistan on December 28, 2014, but retained a reduced force of approximately 13,000 troops to support and train Afghan troops until a drawdown was [implemented](https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/implemented) in 2020. A [full withdrawal of U.S. troops](https://www.britannica.com/event/withdrawal-of-United-States-troops-from-Afghanistan), initiated in 2020 and continued into 2021, anticipated the end of U.S. deployment to Afghanistan, but the resurgence of the Taliban during the withdrawal left the country in similar straits to when U.S. forces had arrived 20 years earlier. ## Casualties Between 2001 and the end of major combat operations in December 2014, 3,486 NATO troops were killed the [U.S. Department of Defense](https://www.britannica.com/topic/US-Department-of-Defense) recorded 2,354 American service members and DoD civilian employees killed and 20,149 wounded in Afghanistan and other theaters related to Operation Enduring Freedom. Among NATO forces, losses were heaviest for the United Kingdom (457 killed, some 2,000 wounded), [Canada](https://www.britannica.com/place/Canada) (158 killed, more than 2,000 wounded), and France (90 killed, some 700 wounded. With 43 service members killed, [Denmark’s](https://www.britannica.com/place/Denmark) casualties were among the highest in NATO on a per capita basis (Denmark’s population was about 5.6 million in 2014). Non-NATO countries also suffered losses, most notably [Australia](https://www.britannica.com/place/Australia) (41 killed, 263 wounded) and [Georgia](https://www.britannica.com/place/Georgia) (32 killed, 435 wounded—overwhelmingly the highest per capita casualty rate among coalition partners). More than 78,000 Afghan military personnel and police officers were killed during the conflict. The Taliban and other [affiliated](https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/affiliated) groups lost some 84,000 troops. Civilian suffering was enormous. At least 47,000 Afghan civilians were killed in the fighting, and tens of thousands more died from indirect causes such as hunger and disease. Approximately 2.7 Afghans were forced to flee to neighboring countries such as Pakistan or Iran, and 4 million more were internally displaced. By the time the Taliban recaptured Kabul in August 2021, entire generations of Afghans had come to adulthood knowing nothing but war. [The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica](https://www.britannica.com/editor/The-Editors-of-Encyclopaedia-Britannica/4419) Load Next Page Feedback Thank you for your feedback Our editors will review what you’ve submitted and determine whether to revise the article. print Print Please select which sections you would like to print: verifiedCite While every effort has been made to follow citation style rules, there may be some discrepancies. Please refer to the appropriate style manual or other sources if you have any questions. Select Citation Style Witte, Griff. "Afghanistan War". Encyclopedia Britannica, 7 Apr. 2026, https://www.britannica.com/event/Afghanistan-War. Accessed 9 April 2026. Copy Citation Share Share to social media [Facebook](https://www.facebook.com/BRITANNICA/) [X](https://x.com/britannica) URL <https://www.britannica.com/event/Afghanistan-War> External Websites - [Imperial War Museums - Afghanistan War: How did 9/11 lead to a 20-year war?](https://www.iwm.org.uk/history/afghanistan-war-how-did-911-lead-to-a-20-year-war) - [National Army Museum - War in Afghanistan](https://www.nam.ac.uk/explore/war-afghanistan) - [United States Institute of Peace - In Afghanistan, Was a Loss Better than Peace?](https://www.usip.org/publications/2022/11/afghanistan-was-loss-better-peace) - [Council on Foreign Relations - The U.S. War in Afghanistan](https://www.cfr.org/timelines/us-war-afghanistan) - [The Canadian Encyclopedia - War in Afghanistan](https://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/international-campaign-against-terrorism-in-afghanistan) - [Teach Democracy - The War in Afghanistan: What Should America's Policy Be?](https://teachdemocracy.org/images/pdf/gates/War-in-Afginistan.pdf) - [CNN - US War in Afghanistan Fast Facts](https://edition.cnn.com/world/operation-enduring-freedom-fast-facts) - [Al Jazeera - Afghanistan: The price of peace](https://www.aljazeera.com/video/featured-documentaries/2025/1/24/afghanistan-the-price-of-peace) - [BBC - Afghanistan war: What could peace look like?](https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-47733079)
Readable Markdown	Top Questions ### What was the cause of the Afghanistan War? ### What were the three phases of the Afghanistan War? ### What was the outcome of the U.S. troop surge in Afghanistan under Obama? ### How many NATO troops were killed during the Afghanistan War? ### What was the impact of the Afghanistan War on civilians? ## News • Afghanistan War, international conflict in [Afghanistan](https://www.britannica.com/place/Afghanistan) beginning in 2001 that was triggered by the [September 11 attacks](https://www.britannica.com/event/September-11-attacks) and consisted of three phases. The first phase—toppling the [Taliban](https://www.britannica.com/topic/Taliban) (the ultraconservative political and religious faction that ruled Afghanistan and provided sanctuary for [al-Qaeda](https://www.britannica.com/topic/al-Qaeda), perpetrators of the September 11 attacks)—was brief, lasting just two months. The second phase, from 2002 until 2008, was marked by a [U.S.](https://www.britannica.com/topic/history-of-United-States) strategy of defeating the Taliban militarily and rebuilding core institutions of the [Afghan](https://www.britannica.com/topic/Pashtun) state. The third phase, a turn to classic counterinsurgency doctrine, began in 2008 and accelerated with U.S. Pres. [Barack Obama](https://www.britannica.com/biography/Barack-Obama)’s 2009 decision to temporarily increase the U.S. troop presence in Afghanistan. The larger force was used to [implement](https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/implement) a strategy of protecting the population from Taliban attacks and supporting efforts to reintegrate insurgents into Afghan society. The strategy came coupled with a timetable for the withdrawal of the foreign forces from Afghanistan; beginning in 2011, security responsibilities would be gradually handed over to the Afghan military and police. The new approach largely failed to achieve its aims. Insurgent attacks and civilian casualties remained stubbornly high, while many of the Afghan military and police units taking over security duties appeared to be ill-prepared to hold off the Taliban. By the time the U.S. and [NATO](https://www.britannica.com/topic/North-Atlantic-Treaty-Organization) combat mission formally ended in December 2014, the 13-year Afghanistan War had become the longest [war](https://www.britannica.com/topic/war) ever fought by the [United States](https://www.britannica.com/place/United-States). American military [casualties](https://www.britannica.com/dictionary/casualties) included some 2,400 service members killed and some 20,700 others wounded. ## Prelude to the September 11 attacks The joint U.S. and [British](https://www.britannica.com/topic/history-of-United-Kingdom) invasion of Afghanistan in late 2001 was preceded by over two decades of war in Afghanistan (see [Afghan War](https://www.britannica.com/event/Afghan-War)). On December 24, 1979, Soviet tanks rumbled across the [Amu Darya](https://www.britannica.com/place/Amu-Darya) River and into Afghanistan, ostensibly to restore stability following a coup that brought to power a pair of Marxist-Leninist political groups—the People’s (Khalq) Party and the Banner (Parcham) Party. But the Soviet presence touched off a nationwide rebellion by fighters—known as the [mujahideen](https://www.britannica.com/topic/mujahideen-Afghani-rebels)—who drew upon [Islam](https://www.britannica.com/topic/Islam) as a uniting source of inspiration. These fighters won extensive covert backing from [Pakistan](https://www.britannica.com/place/Pakistan), [Saudi Arabia](https://www.britannica.com/place/Saudi-Arabia), and the United States and were joined in their fight by foreign volunteers (who soon formed a network, known as [al-Qaeda](https://www.britannica.com/topic/al-Qaeda), to coordinate their efforts). The [guerrilla war](https://www.britannica.com/topic/guerrilla-warfare) against the Soviet forces led to their departure in 1989. In the Soviets’ absence, the [mujahideen](https://www.britannica.com/topic/mujahideen-Islam) ousted Afghanistan’s Soviet-backed government and established a transitional government. The mujahideen were politically fragmented, however, and in 1994 armed conflict [escalated](https://www.britannica.com/dictionary/escalated). The Taliban emerged and in 1996 seized [Kabul](https://www.britannica.com/place/Kabul). It instituted a severe interpretation of [Islamic law](https://www.britannica.com/topic/sharia) that, for example, forbade female education and prescribed the severing of hands, or even [execution](https://www.britannica.com/topic/capital-punishment), as punishment for petty crimes. That same year, [al-Qaeda](https://www.britannica.com/topic/al-Qaeda) leader [Osama bin Laden](https://www.britannica.com/biography/Osama-bin-Laden) was welcomed to Afghanistan (having been expelled from Sudan) and established his organization’s headquarters there. With al-Qaeda’s help, the Taliban won control of over 90 percent of Afghan territory by the summer of 2001. On September 9 of that year, al-Qaeda hit men carried out the assassination of famed mujahideen leader Ahmad Shah Masoud, who at the time was leading the [Northern Alliance](https://www.britannica.com/topic/Northern-Alliance) (a loose coalition of mujahideen militias that maintained control of a small section of northern Afghanistan) as it battled the Taliban and who had unsuccessfully sought greater U.S. backing for his efforts. ## The September 11 attacks and the [U.S.](https://www.britannica.com/topic/history-of-United-States)\-[British](https://www.britannica.com/topic/history-of-United-Kingdom) invasion The hijacking and crashing of four U.S. jetliners on September 11, 2001, brought instant attention to Afghanistan. The plot had been hatched by al-Qaeda, and some of the 19 hijackers had trained in Afghanistan. In the aftermath of the attacks, the administration of U.S. Pres. [George W. Bush](https://www.britannica.com/biography/George-W-Bush) coalesced around a strategy of first ousting the Taliban from Afghanistan and dismantling al-Qaeda, though others contemplated actions in [Iraq](https://www.britannica.com/place/Iraq), including long-standing plans for toppling Pres. [Saddam Hussein](https://www.britannica.com/biography/Saddam-Hussein). Bush demanded that Taliban leader Mullah [Mohammed Omar](https://www.britannica.com/biography/Mohammad-Omar) “deliver to \[the\] United States authorities all the leaders of al-Qaeda who hide in your land,” and when Omar refused, U.S. officials began [implementing](https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/implementing) a plan for war. The campaign in Afghanistan started covertly on September 26, with a [Central Intelligence Agency](https://www.britannica.com/topic/Central-Intelligence-Agency) (CIA) team known as Jawbreaker arriving in the country and, working with anti-Taliban allies, initiating a strategy for overthrowing the regime. U.S. officials hoped that by partnering with the Afghans they could avoid [deploying](https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/deploying) a large force to Afghanistan. Pentagon officials were especially concerned that the United States not be drawn into a protracted occupation of Afghanistan, as had occurred with the Soviets more than two decades prior. The United States relied primarily on the [Northern Alliance](https://www.britannica.com/topic/Northern-Alliance), which had just lost Massoud but had regrouped under other commanders, including [Tajik](https://www.britannica.com/topic/Tajik-people) leader Mohammed Fahim and Abdul Rashid Dostum, an [Uzbek](https://www.britannica.com/topic/Uzbek-people). The Americans also teamed with anti-Taliban [Pashtuns](https://www.britannica.com/topic/Pashtun) in southern Afghanistan, including a little-known tribal leader named [Hamid Karzai](https://www.britannica.com/biography/Hamid-Karzai). [![Civil War era cannon overlooks Kennesaw Mountain National Battle. (military, artillery, American history)](https://cdn.britannica.com/27/273327-131-76BD5EF0/civil-war-cannon-overlooks-keneesaw-mountain-national-battle.jpg) Britannica Quiz Pick Your Battles Quiz](https://www.britannica.com/quiz/pick-your-battles-quiz) The CIA team was soon joined by U.S. and British special forces [contingents](https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/contingents), and together they provided arms, equipment, and advice to the Afghans. They also helped coordinate targeting for the air campaign, which began on October 7, 2001, with U.S. and British war planes pounding Taliban targets, thus marking the public start of Operation Enduring Freedom. In late October, [Northern Alliance](https://www.britannica.com/topic/Northern-Alliance) forces began to overtake a series of towns formerly held by the Taliban. The forces worked with U.S. assistance, but they defied U.S. wishes when, on November 13, they marched into Kabul as the Taliban retreated without a fight. [Kandahar](https://www.britannica.com/place/Kandahar), the largest city in southern Afghanistan and the Taliban’s spiritual home, fell on December 6, marking the end of Taliban power. It had been besieged by a force led by Karzai that moved in from the north and one commanded by Gul Agha Sherzai that advanced from the south; both operated with heavy assistance from the [United States](https://www.britannica.com/place/United-States). As the Taliban leadership retreated into Afghanistan’s rural areas and across the border to [Pakistan](https://www.britannica.com/place/Pakistan), anti-Taliban figures [convened](https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/convened) at a [United Nations](https://www.britannica.com/topic/United-Nations) (UN)-sponsored conference in Bonn, [Germany](https://www.britannica.com/place/Germany). With behind-the-scenes maneuvering by the United States, [Karzai](https://www.britannica.com/biography/Hamid-Karzai) was selected to lead the country on an [interim](https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/interim) basis. Go beyond the basics with trusted, in-depth knowledge for professionals, students, and lifelong learners. [SUBSCRIBE](https://premium.britannica.com/premium-membership/?utm_source=premium&utm_medium=inline-cta&utm_campaign=basics-2026) ![Penguin, ship, mountain, atlas](https://cdn.britannica.com/marketing/inline-left.webp) ![shohei ohtani, plants, andy wharhol art](https://cdn.britannica.com/marketing/inline-right.webp) ![Mobile](https://cdn.britannica.com/marketing/inline-mobile.webp?w=400) An intensive manhunt for Omar, [bin Laden](https://www.britannica.com/biography/Osama-bin-Laden), and al-Qaeda deputy chief [Ayman al-Zawahiri](https://www.britannica.com/biography/Ayman-al-Zawahiri) was undertaken. Prior to the killing of bin Laden by U.S. forces in 2011 (see below), the Americans were believed to have come closest to bin Laden in the December 2001 battle of Tora Bora (bin Laden’s mountain stronghold). But bin Laden was thought to have managed to have slipped into Pakistan with the help of Afghan and Pakistani forces that were supposedly helping the Americans. Critics later questioned why the U.S. military had allowed Afghan forces to lead the assault on the cave complex at Tora Bora rather than doing it themselves. (Indeed, Democratic presidential candidate Sen. [John Kerry](https://www.britannica.com/biography/John-Kerry) made this [criticism](https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/criticism) repeatedly during the 2004 general election campaign.) [Al-Qaeda](https://www.britannica.com/topic/al-Qaeda) subsequently reestablished its base of operations in the tribal areas that form Pakistan’s northwest border with Afghanistan. Omar and his top Taliban lieutenants settled in and around the Pakistani city of [Quetta](https://www.britannica.com/place/Quetta-Pakistan), in the remote southwestern province of [Balochistān](https://www.britannica.com/place/Balochistan). One of the final major battles of the first phase of the war came in March 2002 with Operation Anaconda in the eastern province of Paktia, which involved U.S. and Afghan forces fighting some 800 al-Qaeda and Taliban militants. The operation also marked the entrance of other countries’ troops into the war: [special operations forces](https://www.britannica.com/topic/special-operations-warfare) from [Australia](https://www.britannica.com/place/Australia), Canada, [Denmark](https://www.britannica.com/place/Denmark), [France](https://www.britannica.com/place/France), Germany, and [Norway](https://www.britannica.com/place/Norway) participated. ## Iraq takes center stage With the ouster of the Taliban and al-Qaeda, the international focus shifted to reconstruction and nation-building efforts in Afghanistan. In April 2002 Bush announced a “[Marshall Plan](https://www.britannica.com/event/Marshall-Plan)” for Afghanistan in a speech at the [Virginia Military Institute](https://www.britannica.com/topic/Virginia-Military-Institute), promising substantial financial assistance. But from the start, development efforts in Afghanistan were inadequately funded, as attention had turned among U.S. officials to the looming [confrontation](https://www.britannica.com/dictionary/confrontation) in Iraq. Between 2001 and 2009, just over \$38 billion in humanitarian and reconstruction assistance to Afghanistan was appropriated by the U.S. Congress. More than half the money went to training and equipping Afghan security forces, and the remainder represented a fraction of the amount that experts said would be required to develop a country that had consistently ranked near the bottom of global [human development](https://www.britannica.com/science/human-development) indices. The aid program was also bedeviled by waste and by confusion over whether civilian or military authorities had responsibility for leading education, health, agriculture, and other development projects. Despite military commitments from dozens of U.S. allies, the United States initially argued against allowing the other foreign forces—operating as the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF)—to [deploy](https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/deploy) beyond the Kabul area. That choice was directed by the [Pentagon](https://www.britannica.com/topic/Pentagon), which insisted on a “light footprint” out of concern that Afghanistan would become a drag on U.S. resources as attention shifted to Iraq (see [Iraq War](https://www.britannica.com/event/Iraq-War)). When ISAF did begin to venture beyond Kabul, its efforts were hampered by the “caveats” of its component countries—restrictions that kept all but a handful of the militaries from actively engaging in the fight against the Taliban and al-Qaeda. The force, overseen by the [North Atlantic Treaty Organization](https://www.britannica.com/topic/North-Atlantic-Treaty-Organization) (NATO) in the organization’s first mission outside Europe, was also hamstrung by a lack of troops as international commitments to Afghanistan flagged. The [United States](https://www.britannica.com/topic/history-of-United-States) consistently represented the largest foreign force in Afghanistan, and it [bore](https://www.britannica.com/dictionary/bore) the heaviest losses. By spring 2010 more than 1,000 [U.S.](https://www.britannica.com/topic/history-of-United-States) troops had been killed in Afghanistan, while the [British](https://www.britannica.com/topic/history-of-United-Kingdom) troops suffered some 300 deaths and the Canadians some 150. Both [Britain](https://www.britannica.com/place/United-Kingdom) and [Canada](https://www.britannica.com/place/Canada) stationed their troops in Afghanistan’s south, where fighting had been most intense. More than 20 other countries also lost troops during the war, though many—such as Germany and Italy—chose to focus their forces in the north and the west, where the insurgency was less potent. As the fighting dragged on and casualties escalated, the war lost popularity in many Western countries, creating domestic political pressure to keep troops out of harm’s way or to pull them out altogether. Initially, the war appeared to have been won with relative ease. On May 1, 2003, U.S. Secretary of Defense [Donald Rumsfeld](https://www.britannica.com/biography/Donald-Rumsfeld) announced an end to “major combat” in Afghanistan. On the same day, aboard the [aircraft carrier](https://www.britannica.com/technology/aircraft-carrier) USS Abraham Lincoln, President Bush announced that “major combat operations in Iraq have ended.” At that time, there were 8,000 U.S. troops in Afghanistan. The first democratic Afghan elections since the fall of the Taliban were held on October 9, 2004, with approximately 80 percent of registered voters turning out to give [Karzai](https://www.britannica.com/biography/Hamid-Karzai) a full five-year term as president. Parliamentary elections were staged a year later, with dozens of women claiming seats set aside for them to ensure gender [diversity](https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/diversity). The 2004 constitution provided Afghanistan with a powerful central government and weak regional and local authorities—a structure that was in opposition to the country’s long-standing traditions. Despite vast powers under the constitution, Karzai was widely regarded as a weak leader who grew increasingly isolated as the war progressed. He survived several assassination attempts—including a September 2004 rocket attack that nearly struck a helicopter he was riding in—and security concerns kept him largely confined to the presidential palace in Kabul. Karzai’s government was beset by corruption, and efforts to build a national army and a police force were troubled from the start by [inadequate](https://www.britannica.com/dictionary/inadequate) international support and ethnic differences between Afghans. ## [Taliban](https://www.britannica.com/topic/Taliban) resurgence Beginning in 2005, violence climbed as the Taliban reasserted its presence with new tactics modeled on those being used by insurgents in Iraq. Whereas early in the war the Taliban had focused on battling U.S. and [NATO](https://www.britannica.com/topic/North-Atlantic-Treaty-Organization) forces in open combat—a strategy that largely failed to inflict significant damage—their adoption of the use of [suicide](https://www.britannica.com/topic/suicide) bombings and buried bombs, known as IEDs ([improvised explosive device](https://www.britannica.com/technology/improvised-explosive-device)s), began to cause heavy casualties. Between January 2005 and August 2006, Afghanistan endured 64 suicide attacks—a tactic that had been virtually unknown in the country’s history before then. At first the attacks caused relatively few casualties, but as training and the availability of high-powered explosives increased, the death toll began to climb: in one particularly vicious attack in November 2007, at least 70 people—many of them children—were killed as a parliamentary delegation visited the northern town of [Baghlan](https://www.britannica.com/place/Baghlan). Less than a year later, a bombing at the [Indian](https://www.britannica.com/topic/Indigenous-peoples-of-the-Americas) embassy in Kabul killed more than 50; the Afghan government accused elements of Pakistan’s intelligence service of complicity in the attack, a charge Pakistan denied. [Afghanistan War](https://cdn.britannica.com/09/187809-050-13C72062/operations-forces-search-combat-patrol-fighters-Taliban-April-2007.jpg)U.S. special operations forces conducting a mounted combat patrol in search of Taliban fighters in Helmand province, Afghanistan, April 2007. The Taliban’s resurgence corresponded with a rise in anti-American and anti-Western [sentiment](https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/sentiment) among Afghans. Those feelings were nurtured by the sluggish pace of reconstruction, allegations of prisoner abuse at U.S. detention facilities, widespread corruption in the Afghan government, and civilian casualties caused by U.S. and NATO bombings. In May 2006 a U.S. military vehicle crashed and killed several Afghans, an event that sparked violent anti-American riots in Kabul—the worst since the war began. Later that year NATO took command of the war across the country; American officials said that the United States would play a lesser role and that the face of the war would become increasingly international. This shift reflected the greater need for U.S. troops and resources in Iraq, where sectarian warfare was reaching alarming levels. By contrast, the war in Afghanistan was still regarded in Washington as a relative success. For commanders on the ground in Afghanistan, however, it was apparent that the Taliban intended to [escalate](https://www.britannica.com/dictionary/escalate) its campaign, launching more frequent attacks and intensifying its fund-raising from wealthy individuals and groups in the [Persian Gulf](https://www.britannica.com/place/Persian-Gulf). Another source of money was Afghanistan’s resurgent [opium](https://www.britannica.com/science/opium) industry. International pressure had forced the Taliban to curb [poppy](https://www.britannica.com/plant/poppy) cultivation during their final year in power, but after their removal in 2001 the opium industry made a comeback, with revenues in some areas of the country benefiting the insurgency. Western-backed campaigns to eliminate poppy cultivation or to encourage farmers to grow other crops had little discernible impact; Afghanistan soon became the supplier of over 90 percent of the world’s opium. Quick Facts Date: December 2001 - 2014 The United States, meanwhile, had had only limited success in killing or capturing Taliban commanders. In early 2007, Mullah Obaidullah Akhund—the Taliban’s number three leader—was captured in Pakistan, and months later Mullah Dadullah—the Taliban’s top military commander—was killed in fighting with U.S. forces. But those were the exceptions. Top [insurgent](https://www.britannica.com/dictionary/insurgent) leaders remained at large, many of them in the tribal regions of Pakistan that adjoin Afghanistan. This reality prompted the United States to begin targeting insurgent leaders who lived in [Pakistan](https://www.britannica.com/topic/history-of-Pakistan) with missiles fired from [remotely piloted drones](https://www.britannica.com/technology/unmanned-aerial-vehicle). The [CIA](https://www.britannica.com/topic/Central-Intelligence-Agency) program of targeted killings was publicly denied by U.S. officials but was widely acknowledged in private. Pakistani officials in turn denounced the strikes in public but privately approved of them as long as civilian casualties were limited. The United States repeatedly threatened to expand its [drone](https://www.britannica.com/dictionary/drone) strikes beyond Pakistan’s tribal areas and into regions such as Balochistān if Pakistan did not demonstrate greater cooperation in battling the Taliban, a group it had long fostered.
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