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The Darfur Conflict[14][15] was a guerrilla conflict or civil war centered on the Darfur region of Sudan. It began in February 2003 when the Sudan Liberation Movement/Army (SLM/A) and Justice and Equality Movement (JEM) groups in Darfur took up arms, accusing the Sudanese government of oppressing non-Arab Sudanese in favor of Sudanese Arabs.
There are various estimates on the number of human casualties, ranging from under twenty thousand to several hundred thousand dead, from either direct combat or starvation and disease inflicted by the conflict. There have also been mass displacements and coercive migrations, forcing millions into refugee camps or over the border and creating a large humanitarian crisis and is regarded by many as a genocide.
was a 34-day military conflict in Lebanon, northern Israel and the Israeli-occupied territories. The principal parties were Hezbollah paramilitary forces and the Israeli military. The conflict started on 12 July 2006, and continued until a United Nations-brokered ceasefire went into effect in the morning on 14 August 2006, though it formally ended on 8 September 2006 when Israel lifted its naval blockade of Lebanon.
The War in Somalia was an armed conflict involving largely Ethiopian and Somali Transitional Federal Government (TFG) forces and Somali troops from Puntland versus the Somali Islamist umbrella group, the Islamic Court Union (ICU), and other affiliated militias for control of the country. There is a clear connection between War in Somalia (2009–) and the War of 2006.
fought between forces loyal to Colonel Muammar Gaddafi and those seeking to oust his government.[43][44] The war was preceded by protests in Benghazi beginning on 15 February 2011, which led to clashes with security forces that fired on the crowd.[45] The protests escalated into a rebellion that spread across the country,[46] with the forces opposing Gaddafi establishing an interim governing body, the National Transitional Council. On 16 September 2011, the National Transitional Council was recognised by the United Nations as the legal representative of Libya, replacing the Gaddafi government.
The Iraq War (or War in Iraq) began on March 20, 2003[49][50] with the invasion of Iraq by the United States under the administration of President George W. Bush and the United Kingdom under Prime Minister Tony Blair.[51] The war is also referred to as the Occupation of Iraq, the Second Gulf War, or Operation Iraqi Freedom by the US military.
The War in Afghanistan began on October 7, 2001,[34] as the armed forces of the United States of America, the United Kingdom and the Afghan United Front (Northern Alliance) launched Operation Enduring Freedom. The primary driver of the invasion was the September 11 attacks on the United States, with the stated goal of dismantling the Al-Qaeda terrorist organization and ending its use of Afghanistan as a base. The United States also said that it would remove the Taliban regime from power and create a viable democratic state. A decade into the war, the U.S. continues to battle a widespread Taliban insurgency, and the war has expanded into the tribal areas of neighboring Pakistan.[35]
The 2011 Syrian uprising is an ongoing internal conflict occurring in Syria. Protests started on 26 January 2011, and escalated into an uprising by 15 March 2011. The uprising is influenced by concurrent protests in the region, and has been described as "unprecedented."[33][34]
The clashes left some 300,000 people internally displaced and Uzbek leaders wanted the UN peacekeeping force to intervene because they did not trust the Kyrgyz forces any longer.[37] Another 100,000 refugees crossed the border into Uzbekistan.[38] Ethnic Uzbeks threatened to blow up an oil depot in Osh if they failed to get guarantees of protection.
The 2008 South Ossetia War or Russo-Georgian War was an armed conflict in August 2008 between Georgia on one side, and Russia and separatist governments of South Ossetia and Abkhazia on the other.
began in 2006 after Hamas's legislative victories and continued, politically and sometimes militarily, until a reconciliation agreement was signed in May of 2011.
The South Yemen insurgency is a term used by the Yemeni government to describe the protests and attacks on government forces in southern Yemen, ongoing since 27 April 2009 on South Yemen's independence day. Although the violence has been blamed on elements within the southern secessionist movement, leaders of the group maintain that their aims of independence are to be achieved through peaceful means, and claim that attacks are from ordinary citizens in response to the government's provocative actions.
During the Arab Spring Revolutions of 2011, protestors began pouring into the Pearl Roundabout area. The protesters selected 14 February as a day of protest to coincide with the 10th anniversary of the National Action Charter.
on March 25, 2008, was an amphibious assault led by the Comoros, backed by African Union (AU) forces, including troops from Sudan, Tanzania, Senegal, along with logistical support from Libya and France.
The Sri Lankan Civil War was a conflict fought on the island of Sri Lanka. Beginning on July 23, 1983, there was an on-and-off insurgency against the government by the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (the LTTE, also known as the Tamil Tigers), a separatist militant organization which fought to create an independent Tamil state named Tamil Eelam in the north and the east of the island. After a 26 year long military campaign, the Sri Lankan military defeated the Tamil Tigers in May 2009.[1]
The 21st century is looking a lot like the 20th century. War war and more war. International wars, drug wars, religious wars, civil wars, insurgencies, coups, revolt and rebellion, resource wars, etc etc.
Originally posted by Panic2k11
reply to post by muzzleflash
The 21st century is looking a lot like the 20th century. War war and more war. International wars, drug wars, religious wars, civil wars, insurgencies, coups, revolt and rebellion, resource wars, etc etc.
I'm sorry, but did you expect something else ? You are also being too optimistic, this century will be even worst that the last. More people and less resources and more pressure from already unsolved issues...
I'm very pessimistic and do not expect things to get better.
You didn't mention nuclear war, biological epidemics, our nuclear meltdowns, the mass chemical pollution, etc.
Perhaps we are both being overly optimistic?
Thankfully aliens are real. Can you say "Beam me up Scotty"?
What's funny is that the Americans who are bitching about the wars would likely beg for them back if they realized what the repercussions of attempting world peace would entail.
Look at what happened after the USSR broke up. Gangs took over local areas, and the mafia infiltrated high ranks within the government. It lead the way to geopolitical instabilities, that the US has been dealing with ever since.
If we attempted to reign in our military, China would dominate this century by winning the resource wars and setting bases all around the world. If neither major power tried to dominate smaller countries, their own nefarious entities would take over. If not from their own government, then from local gangs, and on, and on..
So yeah, if The US didn't have an enemy to be pissed off at and attack, then the government would have no justification to exist. If the government didn't exist, then there would likely be uncivil anarchy.
That's not going to change until people choose between their own comforts, and their conscience. Good luck with that one!
Originally posted by Panic2k11
reply to post by unityemissions
So yeah, if The US didn't have an enemy to be pissed off at and attack, then the government would have no justification to exist. If the government didn't exist, then there would likely be uncivil anarchy.
This is a fallacy, the USA government does not depend on the military industrial complex and any dependence is self inflicted and perpetuated, they depend on the financial system that has increasingly become dependent and meshed on that industry but there is still time to act in that regard. A collapse of the federal government would not result in anarchy, each state would take over some of the responsibilities over time.
That's not going to change until people choose between their own comforts, and their conscience. Good luck with that one!
Originally posted by Panic2k11
I think that the system is now so integrated that in parts it is self-sustaining and openly antagonistic to any change. Even if people wanted to change the social system they can not, it is now beyond the point of becoming aware of the implications and results of their actions. It is like a nuclear reactor out of control it will run until it blows and melts away and unless a new global order is created (not the proposed one but a more humane and fair to all peoples) there is a snow ball chance in hell that anything will change for the best.
Look at what happened after the USSR broke up. Gangs took over local areas, and the mafia infiltrated high ranks within the government. It lead the way to geopolitical instabilities, that the US has been dealing with ever since.