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Wars in Afghanistan and Iraq
Afghanistan 2001–2021; Iraq 2003–2011· War· Middle East & Africa
Well documentedSolid records, physical evidence or scientific consensus.
US-led wars after 9/11: in Afghanistan, 2001–2021, against the Taliban and al-Qaeda; in Iraq, 2003–2011, to overthrow Saddam Hussein.
See it on the History map →What happened
In October 2001 the US and allies attacked Afghanistan and ousted the Taliban within weeks; bin Laden escaped and was killed in Pakistan in 2011. A 20-year effort to build an Afghan state followed, but the Taliban retook Kabul in August 2021 as US troops left. In March 2003 the US and Britain invaded Iraq, saying it had weapons of mass destruction; no stockpiles were found. Saddam fell quickly, but insurgency and sectarian civil war followed.
Why it matters
They cost trillions of dollars and hundreds of thousands of lives (estimates vary), soured Americans on 'nation-building', and helped give rise to ISIS.
How we know
Military and government records, the Iraq Body Count and Costs of War projects, the US Senate and UK Chilcot inquiries into prewar intelligence, and journalists' reporting.
Still debated
Whether the Iraq case rested on honest intelligence failure or deliberate exaggeration, and what success in Afghanistan could have looked like, remain disputed.
Connections (2)
▸September 11 attacks led to the Wars in Afghanistan and IraqWell documented
The connection
Within a month of 9/11 the US attacked Afghanistan, whose Taliban government sheltered al-Qaeda. The attacks also changed US thinking about threats, and the Bush administration argued Saddam Hussein might give banned weapons to terrorists. Iraq had no role in 9/11, but the 'war on terror' framed the 2003 invasion.
When and how
Afghanistan from October 7, 2001; Iraq from March 20, 2003; President George W. Bush, British prime minister Tony Blair and allies.
How we know
Congress's 2001 authorization of force, leaders' speeches, and the 9/11 Commission, which found no operational link between Iraq and al-Qaeda.
Debates and open questions
Whether the US would have invaded Iraq without 9/11, and how far the attacks served as a pretext, is debated.
▸Wars in Afghanistan and Iraq unsettled the region before the Arab SpringDebated
The connection
The Iraq invasion removed one dictator by force and set off Sunni–Shia conflict, while the US loudly promoted democracy in the Middle East. Some see this as helping unsettle authoritarian rule in the region; others think Iraq's chaos made change look dangerous and delayed it.
When and how
Iraq, 2003–2011; President Bush's 'freedom agenda' from 2003; the Arab Spring from December 2010.
How sure are we?
The link is uncertain: Arab Spring protesters mostly cited local grievances such as corruption, unemployment and police abuse, not Iraq.
Debates and open questions
Whether the Iraq War helped spark the uprisings, delayed them, or later shaped their outcomes, as with ISIS spreading into Syria, is debated.