Recent and Current British Wars and Conflicts of 2024

British Soldiers in Afghanistan

Current British Wars and Conflicts: The history of England, Great Britain, and the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, is chock full of wars and conflicts, including several that have occurred in the 21st century, some of which are still being fought. The common question of what wars Britain is currently involved in is answered below:

What are the Recently Concluded and the Current British Wars and Conflicts?

Global War on Terror (2001-Present)

Britain and many other nations around the world are engaged in military, political, economic, and diplomatic efforts to combat Islamic Militancy in Afghanistan and elsewhere. Virtually all British military engagements of the 21st century are related in some manner with the conflict with groups such as al-Qaida, the Taliban, ISIS, Boko Haram, al-Shabaab, and similar groups. The two major wars against existing governments, Saddam Hussein’s Iraq (2003-2009) and Muammar Khadaffi’s Libya (2011), while related to the overall anti-terror campaign, should be seen as separate conflicts.

Afghanistan War (2001-2021)

Britain joined with the United States and other allies to oust the Taliban and al-Qaida from power in Afghanistan in the wake of al-Qaida’s September 11 attacks on the United States. The official British casualty figures for the war in Afghanistan from 2001-2015 (the UK declared an end to combat missions in 2014, though British troops remain and are still in harm’s way) a total 454 British military personnel who have died on operations in Afghanistan. Britain, along with the U.S. and other allies, left Afghanistan in 2021, thus ending the longest war of the 21st Century.

Islamic State War (2014-Present)-

In response to the threat posed by the Islamic State (in Iraq and Syria, among other locations), the British Parliament on September 26, 2014 voted to begin Royal Air Force airstrikes against the Islamic State (AKA ISIL or ISIS) in northern Iraq at the request of the Iraqi government. British airstrikes on ISIS in Syria began after the December 2, 2015 Parliament vote to begin operations in that country. The operational name for the UK portion of the anti-ISIS intervention in Iraq and Syria is Operation Shader. British allies in this ongoing war include the United States, France, and multiple other coalition nations.

Note: The current British intervention in Iraq and Syria follows six years of war in Iraq from 2003-2009 when the UK joined with the United States in the Invasion of Iraq, followed by years of guerrilla warfare against Saddam loyalists, Shiite militants, and al-Qaida inspired Jihadists. British forces ended their participation in the war in Iraq on April 30, 2009.

Mali War (2019-2020)

British troops were deployed in Mali to assist the UN mission there that is fighting the Jihadist rebels. The Mali War itself began in 2012 with a Jihadist/Taureg rebellion against the government. France had nearly 5,000 troops in Mali, and the British SAS currently has a small force in-country, with another 250 long-range recon troops on the way. RAF Chinook helicopters deployed in Mali provide airlift services for French Army troops as they deploy across Mali to engage with the Jihadist rebels. By ealry 2024, French and British forces had left Mali at the request of the new military government.

Persian Gulf Crisis (2019-Present)

Ongoing tensions between the Islamic Republic of Iran and their Iraqi Shiite militia allies, and the United States and the United Kingdom. Multiple rocket launches by the Shiite militias on military bases used by allied forces (in the ISIS fight). British casualties resulted from one such attack in March, 2020.

According the the British Ministry of Defense (MOD), British forces are engaged in many operational deployments around the globe, including UN peacekeeping in Cyprus and South Sudan, military training and plannin with Nigeria as that nation fights Boko Haram. The British also maintain a training regimen in Ukraine, which has been fighting a six-year war with Russian-backes separtists.

In addition to these combat or near-combat roles, the British military is engaged in training and support missions in several nations that are currently at war, inlcuding Yemen and Somalia. It is widely assumed that SAS and SBS special forces troops engage in covert and not-publicized operations against Jihadist forces in various nations. In January, 2022, Britain began sending tons of military supplies to Ukraine, in anticipation of the Russian attack on Ukraine. British advisors also arrived in Ukraine to train the Ukrainian military in the use of the weapons, which include anti-tank and anti-air portable missiles. In the event that this turns into an active war, if Russia invades yet another nation, the presence of British troops, even in small numbers, could draw the United Kingdom into war with Russia.

Houthi Conflict (2023-Present)

Part of the Israel-Hamas War that began on October 7, 2023. Houthi rebels in Yemen, backed by Iran, began firing missiles and drones at shipping in the Red Sea in support of Hamas. British and American naval forces in the Red Sea, intercepted multiple attacks from October onward.

In January, 2024, American and British forces, after repeated warnings to the Houthi to cease their attacks, began a series of airstrikes against Houthi targets in western Yemen.

Past Conflicts:

British Conflict With Ireland:
Northern Ireland 1968-1998
Irish Dual Citizenship

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