List of modern conflicts in the Middle East
Encyclopedia
Note:
(combined figure 170,500-873,000+) of:
[b].Middle Eastern theatre of World War II 40,000 (combined casualty figure 12,338-14,898+) of:
[c].Iran crisis of 1946 2,000 casualties (combined casualty figure 921+) of:
[d].Arab-Israeli Wars 51,000-65,000 casualties (combined casualty figure 51,438-62,468+) of:
[e].North Yemen Civil War
100,000-200,000 casualties
[f].Lebanese Civil War
150,000 mortal casualties of:
[g].Iran-Iraq war
500,000-1,200,000 mortal casualties (combined death count 184,000+) of
[h].Iraq War
[i].Arab Spring
in Syria, Yemen, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Oman and Bahrain, combined casualty figure 5,600-7,400:
killed
- "Modern" is defined as post-Ottoman period, from 1918 until today.
- "Middle East" is traditionally defined as the Fertile Crescent (Mesopotamia, Levant, Egypt) and neighbouring areas of Arabia, Anatolia and Iran. It currently encompasses the area from Egypt, Turkey and Cyprus in the West to Iran and the Persian Gulf at the East.
- "Conflict" is defined as a separate 100+ casualty incident.
- In all cases conflicts are listed by total deaths, including subconflicts.
Date | Conflict | Location | Casualties |
---|---|---|---|
1918–1922 | Simko Shikak revolt Simko Shikak revolt Simko Shikak revolt relates to the Kurdish uprising, led by Simko Shikak in Qajar Persia during 1919-1922.-Early insurrection and the massacre of Assyrians:... |
Persia | 1,000–5,500 |
1918–1920 | First Nejd-Hejaz War | Kingdom of Nejd Kingdom of Hejaz Kingdom of Hejaz The Kingdom of Hejaz was a state in the Hejaz region, ruled by the Hashemite family. The kingdom was annexed by Nejd and merged into the Kingdom of Nejd and Hejaz in the mid 1920s, which would eventually be known as Saudi Arabia in 1932.-Kings of Hejaz:... |
1,392 |
1919 | Egyptian Revolution of 1919 Egyptian Revolution of 1919 The Egyptian Revolution of 1919 was a countrywide revolution against the British occupation of Egypt and Sudan. It was carried out by Egyptians and Sudanese from different walks of life in the wake of the British-ordered exile of revolutionary leader Saad Zaghlul, and other members of the Wafd... |
Sultanate of Egypt Sultanate of Egypt The Sultanate of Egypt is the name of the short-lived protectorate that the United Kingdom imposed over Egypt between 1914 and 1922.-History:... |
800-3,000 |
1919–1921 | Franco-Syrian War Franco-Syrian War The Franco-Syrian War was a war from 1919 to 1921 between Syria and France. France conquered Syria; King Faisal, who was declared king of Greater Syria, was exiled to the United Kingdom... |
Syrian Hashemite Kingdom Syria French Mandate | 5,000 |
1919–1923 | Turkish War of Independence Turkish War of Independence The Turkish War of Independence was a war of independence waged by Turkish nationalists against the Allies, after the country was partitioned by the Allies following the Ottoman Empire's defeat in World War I... (Asia Minor Catastrophe) |
Turkey Greece Soviet Union | 170,500–873,000 |
1920–1922 | Iraqi revolt against the British Iraqi revolt against the British The Iraqi Revolt against the British , or the Great Iraqi Revolution of 1920, started in Baghdad in the summer of 1920 with mass demonstrations of both Sunni and Shia, including protests by embittered officers from the old Ottoman army, against the policies of British Acting Civil Commissioner Sir... |
British Mandate of Mesopotamia | 9,000 |
1921 | Kuwait-Najd Border War | 1st Kingdom of Kuwait Sultanate of Nejd | 200 |
1922–1924 | Ikhwan raids on Transjordan Ikhwan raids on Transjordan Ikhwan raids on Transjordan were a series of plunders by the Ikhwan, irregular Arab tribesmen of Najd, on Transjordan between 1922 and 1924. The repeated Wahhabi incursions fron Najd into southern parts of his territory were the most serious threat to emir Abdullah's position in Transjordan... |
Transjordan Transjordan The Emirate of Transjordan was a former Ottoman territory in the Southern Levant that was part of the British Mandate of Palestine... |
500 |
1923 | Adwan Rebellion Adwan Rebellion Adwan Rebellion or the Balqa Revolt was the largest uprising against the newly installed Transjordanian government, headed by Mezhar Ruslan, during its first years. The rebellion was initiated in the early months of 1923, but was quickly crushed with the assistance of the British RAF... |
Transjordan Transjordan The Emirate of Transjordan was a former Ottoman territory in the Southern Levant that was part of the British Mandate of Palestine... |
100 |
1924–1927 | Syrian Revolution (Druze War) | Lebanese French Mandate Syria French Mandate Jabal Druze State of Damascus State of Damascus The State of Damascus was one of the six states established by the French General Henri Gouraud in the French Mandate of Syria which followed the San Remo conference and the defeat of King Faisal's short-lived monarchy in Syria.... France France The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France... |
12,000 |
1924–1925 | Second Nejd-Hejaz War | Kingdom of Nejd Kingdom of Hejaz Kingdom of Hejaz The Kingdom of Hejaz was a state in the Hejaz region, ruled by the Hashemite family. The kingdom was annexed by Nejd and merged into the Kingdom of Nejd and Hejaz in the mid 1920s, which would eventually be known as Saudi Arabia in 1932.-Kings of Hejaz:... |
450 |
1925 | Sheikh Said rebellion Sheikh Said rebellion Sheikh Said Rebellion was a rebellion of a Kurdish clergy Sheikh Said and a group of former Kurdish Hamidieh soldiers in 1925.-Background:The Azadî was dominated by officers from the former Hamidiye, a Kurdish tribal militia established... |
Turkey | 15,000–250,500 |
1927–1930 | Ikhwan Revolt Ikhwan Revolt The Ikhwan Revolt had begun in 1927, when elements of the Ikhwan, the radical irregular tribesmen of Arabia, undermined the authority of Ibn Saud and begun raiding neighbouring Iraq and Kuwait. The relations between the House of Saud and the Ikhwans deteriorated into an open bloody feud in December... |
British Mandate of Mesopotamia Kuwait Emirate Kingdom of Nejd and Hejaz |
2,000 |
1929 | Palestine riots of 1929 1929 Palestine riots The 1929 Palestine riots, also known as the Western Wall Uprising, the 1929 Massacres, , or the Buraq Uprising , refers to a series of demonstrations and riots in late August 1929 when a long-running dispute between Muslims and Jews over access to the Western Wall in Jerusalem escalated into violence... |
Palestine (mandate) | 251 |
1930 | Ararat rebellion | Turkey Republic of Ararat Republic of Ararat The Republic of Ararat or Kurdish Republic of Ararat was a self-proclaimed Kurdish state. It was located in the northeasten part of modern Turkey, being centered on Karaköse Province... |
4,500–47,000 |
1933 | Simele massacre Simele massacre The Simele Massacre was a massacre committed by the armed forces of the Kingdom of Iraq during the systematic targeting of Assyrians in northern Iraq in August 1933... |
Kingdom of Iraq | 1,000–3,000 |
1934 | Saudi-Yemeni War Saudi-Yemeni War - The conflict :Ibn Saud, the founder of Saudi Arabia, had been named King of the Nejd when the British partitioned the Arabian peninsula following the breakup of the Ottoman Empire. Ibn Saud, by war and alliance, won control of much more, and in 1932 proclaimed the merger of the Nejd and Hejaz... |
Saudi Arabia Mutawakkilite Kingdom of Yemen Mutawakkilite Kingdom of Yemen The Mutawakkilite Kingdom of Yemen , sometimes spelled Mutawakelite Kingdom of Yemen, also known as the Kingdom of Yemen or as North Yemen, was a country from 1918 to 1962 in the northern part of what is now Yemen... |
2,100 |
1935 | Imam Reza shrine rebellion Imam Reza shrine rebellion The Imam Reza shrine rebellion or 1935 Imam Reza shrine massacre took place in 1935, when a backlash against the modernizing, secularist policies of Reza Shah erupted in the Imam Reza shrine in Mashhad... |
151 | |
1936–1939 | Arab Revolt in Palestine | Palestine (mandate) | 5,000 |
1937 | Dersim Rebellion Dersim Rebellion The Dersim rebellion was an uprising against the Turkish government in the Dersim region of eastern Turkey, which includes Tunceli Province, Elazığ Province, and Bingöl Province... |
Turkey | 40,000–70,000 |
1938–1948 | British-Zionist conflict | Palestine (mandate) | 1,000 |
1939–1945 | Middle East Theatre of World War II Middle East Theatre of World War II The Middle East Theatre of World War II is defined largely by reference to the British Middle East Command, which controlled Allied forces in both Southwest Asia and eastern North Africa... |
Kingdom of Iraq Kingdom of Egypt State of Greater Lebanon Palestine (mandate) Syrian Republic | 46,000 |
1946 | Egyptian Student Riots | Kingdom of Egypt | 100–300 |
1946–1947 | Iran crisis of 1946 | Azerbaijan People's Government Soviet Union | 2,000 |
1947– | Israeli-Palestinian conflict Israeli-Palestinian conflict The Israeli–Palestinian conflict is the ongoing conflict between Israelis and Palestinians. The conflict is wide-ranging, and the term is also used in reference to the earlier phases of the same conflict, between Jewish and Zionist yishuv and the Arab population living in Palestine under Ottoman or... |
Palestine (mandate) Israel | 14,500–20,000 |
1947–1948 | Yahya clan coup Mutawakkilite Kingdom of Yemen The Mutawakkilite Kingdom of Yemen , sometimes spelled Mutawakelite Kingdom of Yemen, also known as the Kingdom of Yemen or as North Yemen, was a country from 1918 to 1962 in the northern part of what is now Yemen... |
Mutawakkilite Kingdom of Yemen Mutawakkilite Kingdom of Yemen The Mutawakkilite Kingdom of Yemen , sometimes spelled Mutawakelite Kingdom of Yemen, also known as the Kingdom of Yemen or as North Yemen, was a country from 1918 to 1962 in the northern part of what is now Yemen... |
4,000–5,000 |
1948 | Al-Wathbah Al-Wathbah Al-Wathbah uprising or simply Al-Wathbah , which means The Leap in Arabic, was the term that came to be used for the urban unrest in Baghdad in January 1948. The protests were sparked by the monarchy’s plans to renew the 1930 Anglo-Iraqi Treaty that effectively made Iraq a British protectorate... uprising |
Kingdom of Iraq | 300–400 |
1948–1973 | Arab-Israeli Wars | Kingdom of Egypt Egypt United Arab Republic Syria Jordan Lebanon Israel | 43,000–62,468 |
1952 | Egyptian Revolution | Kingdom of Egypt Egypt | 1,000 |
1953 | 1953 Iranian coup d'état | 300-800 | |
1954-1960 | Jebel Akhdar War Jebel Akhdar War Jebel Akhdar War or Jebel Akhdar rebellion erupted in 1954 and again in 1957 in the Sultanate of Muscat and Oman, led by the Ibadi sect and their Imam Ghalib Bin Ali, against the Sultan Said bin Taimur... |
Sultanate of Muscat and Oman Muscat and Oman Muscat and Oman was a country that encompassed the present day Sultanate of Oman and parts of the United Arab Emirates. The country is not to be confused with either the Trucial States or Trucial Oman, which were sheikhdoms under British protection since 1820.... |
100 |
1955–1959 | Makarios crisis | Cyprus protectorate Modern history of Cyprus This article covers the modern history of Cyprus, from 1878 to the present.-Cyprus as a Protectorate:In 1878 as a result of the Cyprus Convention, the United Kingdom received as a protectorate, the island of Cyprus from the Ottoman Empire in exchange for United Kingdoms military support to the... |
400–600 |
1956–1960 | Yemeni-Adenese clans violence | Aden (colony) | 1,000 |
1958 | 1958 Lebanon Crisis | Lebanon | 1,300–4,000 |
1958–1959 | Iraqi Revolution 14 July Revolution The 14 July Revolution was a coup which took place on 14 July 1958 in Iraq, marking the overthrow of the Hashemite monarchy established by King Faisal I in 1932 under the auspices of the British. In 1958, the coup overthrew King Faisal II, the regent and Crown Prince 'Abd al-Ilah, and Prime... |
Arab Federation of Iraq and Jordan Iraq | 2,000–4,000 |
1961–1970 | First Kurdish Iraqi War First Kurdish Iraqi War First Kurdish Iraqi War was a tribal Kurdish uprising, led by Mustafa Barzani, in an attempt to establish independent Kurdish state in north Iraq. Throughout the 1960s, the uprising escalated into a long war, which failed to resolve despite internal power changes in Iraq... |
Iraq Iraq | 105,000 |
1962–1970 | North Yemen Civil War North Yemen Civil War The North Yemen Civil War was fought in North Yemen between royalists of the Mutawakkilite Kingdom of Yemen and factions of the Yemen Arab Republic from 1962 to 1970. The war began with a coup d'état carried out by the republican leader, Abdullah as-Sallal, which dethroned the newly crowned Imam... |
Mutawakkilite Kingdom of Yemen Yemen Saudi Arabia | 100,000–200,000 |
1962–1975 | Dhofar Rebellion Dhofar Rebellion The Dhofar Rebellion was launched in the province of Dhofar against the Sultanate of Muscat and Oman, which had British support, from 1962 to 1976. It ended with the defeat of the rebels, but the state of Oman had to be radically reformed and modernised to cope with the campaign.-Background:In... |
Oman Jordan Popular Front for the Liberation of Oman Popular Front for the Liberation of Oman The Popular Front for the Liberation of Oman was a Marxist and Arab nationalist revolutionary organisation in the Sultanate of Oman... |
10,000 |
1963 | White Revolution White Revolution The White Revolution was a far-reaching series of reforms in Iran launched in 1963 by the Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi. Mohammad Reza Shah’s reform program was built especially to strengthen those classes that supported the traditional system... (Iran) |
100 | |
1963 | 1963 Ba'athist coup d'état in Iraq February 1963 Iraqi coup d'état The February 1963 Iraqi coup d'état was a February 8, 1963 armed military coup by the Ba'ath Party's Iraqi wing which overthrew the regime of the Prime Minister of Iraq, Brigadier General Abd al-Karim Qasim. General Ahmed Hasan al-Bakr became the new Prime Minister and Colonel Abdul Salam Arif... |
5,000 | |
1963 | 1963 Syrian coup d'état | United Arab Republic Syria | 820 |
1963–1967 | Aden Emergency Aden Emergency The Aden Emergency was an insurgency against the British crown forces in the British controlled territories of South Arabia which now form part of the Yemen. Partly inspired by Nasser's pan Arab nationalism, it began on 10 December 1963 with the throwing of a grenade at a gathering of British... |
2,096 | |
1964 | 1964 Hama riot 1964 Hama riot 1964 Hama riot was the first significant clash between the newly installed Ba'ath party leadership of Syria and the Islamic Brotherhood. It occurred in April 1964, shortly after the 1963 Ba'athist coup d'état. The insurrection was suppressed with heavy military force, resulting in 70-100 mortal... |
Syria | 70–100 |
1966 | 1966 neo-Ba'athist coup d'état in Syria | Syria | 400 |
1970–1971 | Jordan-Palestinian Civil War (Black September) Black September in Jordan September 1970 is known as the Black September in Arab history and sometimes is referred to as the "era of regrettable events." It was a month when Hashemite King Hussein of Jordan moved to quash the militancy of Palestinian organizations and restore his monarchy's rule over the country. The... |
Jordan Lebanon | 2,000–25,000 |
1974 | Turkish invasion of Cyprus Turkish invasion of Cyprus The Turkish invasion of Cyprus, launched on 20 July 1974, was a Turkish military invasion in response to a Greek military junta backed coup in Cyprus... |
Turkey Greece Cyprus | 965–2,000 |
1974–1975 | Second Kurdish Iraqi War Second Kurdish Iraqi War Second Kurdish Iraqi War was an offensive, led by Iraqi forces against rebel KDP troops of Mustafa Barzani during 1974-1975. The war came in the aftermath of the First Kurdish Iraqi War , as the 1970 peace plan for Kurdish autonomy had failed.... |
Iraq | 9,000 |
1975–1990 | Lebanese Civil War Lebanese Civil War The Lebanese Civil War was a multifaceted civil war in Lebanon. The war lasted from 1975 to 1990 and resulted in an estimated 150,000 to 230,000 civilian fatalities. Another one million people were wounded, and today approximately 350,000 people remain displaced. There was also a mass exodus of... |
Lebanon Israel | 150,000 |
1976–1979 | Turkish civil strife | Turkey | 5,000–5,388 |
1976–1982 | Islamic uprising in Syria Islamic uprising in Syria The Islamic uprising in Syria was a series of revolts and armed insurgency by Sunni Islamists, mainly members of the Muslim Brotherhood from 1976 until 1982. The uprising was aimed against the authority of the Ba'ath Party-controlled government of Syria, in what has been called "long campaign of... |
40,000 | |
1977 | 1977 Egyptian Bread Riots 1977 Egyptian Bread Riots The Egyptian 'Bread Riots' of 1977 affected most major cities in Egypt from January 18-19, 1977. The riots were a spontaneous uprising by hundreds of thousands of lower class people protesting World Bank and International Monetary Fund-mandated termination of state subsidies on basic foodstuffs... |
Egypt | 70–800 |
1977– | Turkey – Kurdistan Workers' Party conflict | Turkey Iraq Iraqi Kurdistan | 30,000–35,000 |
1978–1979 | Iranian Revolution Iranian Revolution The Iranian Revolution refers to events involving the overthrow of Iran's monarchy under Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi and its replacement with an Islamic republic under Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, the leader of the... |
3,164–60,000 | |
1978–1980 | Kurdish Rebellion in Iran | 10,000 | |
1979–1983 | Saudi Eastern Province unrest | Saudi Arabia | 182–219 |
1979 | Grand Mosque Seizure Grand Mosque Seizure The Grand Mosque Seizure on November 20, 1979, was an armed attack and takeover by Islamist dissidents of the Al-Masjid al-Haram in Mecca, Saudi Arabia, the holiest place in Islam... |
Saudi Arabia | 307 |
1980 | 1980 Turkish coup d'état | Turkey | 127–550 |
1980 | Iraqi Shia uprising (1st Sadr uprising) | Iraq | 1,000–30,000 |
1980–1988 | Iran-Iraq war Iran-Iraq War The Iran–Iraq War was an armed conflict between the armed forces of Iraq and Iran, lasting from September 1980 to August 1988, making it the longest conventional war of the twentieth century... |
Iran Iraq Kuwait | 1,000,000–1,250,000 |
1986 | South Yemen Civil War | 5,000–12,000 | |
1986 | 1986 Egyptian Conscription Riot | Egypt | 107 |
1986 | 1986 Damascus bombings | 204 | |
1987 | Iranian pilgrim riot (Mecca massacre) 1987 Mecca Massacre A violent clash between Shia pilgrims and demonstrators and the Saudi Arabian security forces during the Hajj pilgrimage, which led to the deaths of over 400 people, occurred in Mecca on 31 July 1987. The event has been variously described as a "riot" or a "massacre." It arose from escalating... |
Saudi Arabia | 402 |
1990–1991 | Gulf War Gulf War The Persian Gulf War , commonly referred to as simply the Gulf War, was a war waged by a U.N.-authorized coalition force from 34 nations led by the United States, against Iraq in response to Iraq's invasion and annexation of Kuwait.The war is also known under other names, such as the First Gulf... |
Iraq Kuwait Saudi Arabia | 40,000–57,000 |
1991 | 1991 uprisings in Iraq 1991 uprisings in Iraq The 1991 uprisings in Iraq were a series of anti-governmental rebellions in southern and northern Iraq during the aftermath of the Gulf War. The revolt was fueled by the perception that the power of Iraqi President Saddam Hussein was vulnerable at the time; as well as by heavily fueled anger at... |
Iraq Iraqi Kurdistan | 50,000–100,000 |
1992–2000 | Terrorism in Egypt Terrorism in Egypt Terrorism in Egypt refers to terrorist attacks in Egypt, many of them linked to Islamic extremism. Targets have included government officials, police, tourists and the Christian minority... |
Egypt | 1,300–2,000 |
1994–1997 | Iraqi Kurdish Civil War Iraqi Kurdish Civil War The Iraqi Kurdish Civil War was a military conflict which took place between rival Kurdish factions in Iraqi Kurdistan in the mid 1990s... |
Iraqi Kurdistan | 3,000 |
1994 | 1994 civil war in Yemen 1994 civil war in Yemen The May–July 1994 civil war in Yemen was waged between the armed forces of the former Northern and Southern Yemeni states and their supporters... |
Yemen | 7,000–10,000 |
1995– | Islamic Insurgency in Saudi Arabia | Saudi Arabia | 300 |
1998 | Operation Desert Fox | Iraq | 600–2,000 |
1999 | Iraqi Shia uprising (2nd Sadr uprising) | Iraq | 100-200 |
2003–2010 | Iraq War | Iraq Iraqi Kurdistan | 109,032–150,726 |
2003– | Baluchi insurgency in Iran Jundallah Jundallah, or Jondollah , also known as People's Resistance Movement of Iran , is an organization based in Balochistan that claims to be fighting for the rights of Sunni Muslims in Iran. It was founded by Abdolmalek Rigi who was captured and executed in Iran in 2010... |
155-400 | |
2004 | Qamishli massacre (2004) | Syria | 30–100 |
2004–2010 | Sa'dah insurgency Sa'dah insurgency The Shia Insurgency in Yemen, also known as the Houthi rebellion, Sa'dah War or Sa'dah conflict is a civil war in Northern Yemen. It began in June 2004 when dissident cleric Hussein Badreddin al-Houthi, head of the Shia Zaidiyyah sect, launched an uprising against the Yemeni government... |
Saudi Arabia Yemen | 8,000-25,000 |
2004–2011 | Iran-PJAK conflict Iran–Party for a Free Life in Kurdistan conflict The Iran–Party for a Free Life in Kurdistan conflict was an armed conflict between the Islamic Republic of Iran and the ethnic secessionist Kurdish guerrilla group Party for a Free Life in Kurdistan... |
Iran Iraqi Kurdistan | 300 |
2006 | Second Lebanon War | Lebanon Israel | 1,900 |
2006– | Fatah–Hamas conflict Fatah–Hamas conflict The Fatah–Hamas conflict , also referred to as the Palestinian Civil War , and the Conflict of Brothers , i.e... |
600–700 | |
2007 | Nahr al-Bared fighting 2007 Lebanon conflict The 2007 Lebanon conflict began when fighting broke out between Fatah al-Islam, an Islamist militant organization, and the Lebanese Armed Forces on May 20, 2007 in Nahr al-Bared, an UNRWA Palestinian refugee camp near Tripoli. It was the most severe internal fighting since Lebanon's 1975–90 civil... |
Lebanon | 470–532 |
2008 | 2008 Lebanon conflict | Lebanon | 105 |
2009– | South Yemen Insurgency | Yemen | 1,554 |
2009–2010 | Iranian election protests | Iran | 27–150 |
2010– | Yemeni al-Qaeda crackdown Yemeni al-Qaeda crackdown The Yemeni al-Qaeda crackdown refers to military operations by the Yemeni government and the United States government against al Qaeda and related targets in Yemen as part of the Global War on Terror. The crackdown began in 2001 and escalated on January 14, 2010 when Yemen declared open war on al... |
Yemen | 944 |
2010– | Arab Spring Arab Spring The Arab Spring , otherwise known as the Arab Awakening, is a revolutionary wave of demonstrations and protests occurring in the Arab world that began on Saturday, 18 December 2010... |
Bahrain Egypt Syria Yemen Lebanon | 5,300-7,300 |
Casualties breakdown
[a].Turkish War of IndependenceTurkish War of Independence
The Turkish War of Independence was a war of independence waged by Turkish nationalists against the Allies, after the country was partitioned by the Allies following the Ottoman Empire's defeat in World War I...
(combined figure 170,500-873,000+) of:
- Greco-Turkish War - 70,000–400,000 casualties
- Franco-Turkish War - 40,000 casualties
- Turkish-Armenian War - 60,000–432,500 casualties
- Koçkiri Rebellion - 500 killed
- Revolt of Ahmet Anzavur - unknown
- Kuva-i InzibatiyeKuva-i InzibatiyeThe Kuvâ-i İnzibâtiyye was an army established on 18 April 1920 by the imperial government of the Ottoman Empire in order to fight against the Turkish National Movement in the aftermath of World War I...
revolt - unknown
[b].Middle Eastern theatre of World War II 40,000 (combined casualty figure 12,338-14,898+) of:
- Anglo-Iraqi WarAnglo-Iraqi WarThe Anglo-Iraqi War was the name of the British campaign against the rebel government of Rashid Ali in the Kingdom of Iraq during the Second World War. The war lasted from 2 May to 31 May 1941. The campaign resulted in the re-occupation of Iraq by British armed forces and the return to power of the...
- at least 560 killed - FarhudFarhudFarhud refers to the pogrom or "violent dispossession" carried out against the Jewish population of Baghdad, Iraq, on June 1-2, 1941 during the Jewish holiday of Shavuot. The riots occurred in a power vacuum following the collapse of the pro-Nazi government of Rashid Ali while the city was in a...
175-780 killed - Syria-Lebanon CampaignSyria-Lebanon campaignThe Syria–Lebanon campaign, also known as Operation Exporter, was the Allied invasion of Vichy French-controlled Syria and Lebanon, in June–July 1941, during World War II. Time Magazine referred to the fighting as a "mixed show" while it was taking place and the campaign remains little known, even...
10,404-12,964 killed - Anglo-Soviet invasion of IranAnglo-Soviet invasion of IranThe Anglo-Soviet invasion of Iran was the Allied invasion of the Imperial State of Iran during World War II, by British, Commonwealth, and Soviet armed forces. The invasion from August 25 to September 17, 1941, was codenamed Operation Countenance...
100-1,062 killed - Bombing of Palestine in World War II 137 deaths
[c].Iran crisis of 1946 2,000 casualties (combined casualty figure 921+) of:
- Azerbaijan People's Republic crisis - 421 killed
- Republic of MahabadRepublic of MahabadThe Republic of Mahabad , officially known as Republic of Kurdistan and established in Iranian Kurdistan, was a short-lived, Kurdish government that sought Kurdish autonomy within the limits of the Iranian state. The capital was the city of Mahabad in northwestern Iran...
crisis - unknown - Civil interregnum - 500 killed
[d].Arab-Israeli Wars 51,000-65,000 casualties (combined casualty figure 51,438-62,468+) of:
- Arab-Israeli War (1948-1949) - 14,400 casualties
- Retribution Operations (1950s) - 3,456 casualties
- Suez War (1956) - 3,203 killed
- Six Day War (1967) - 13,976 killed
- War of Attrition (1967-1970) - 6,403 killed
- Yom Kippur War (1973) 10,000–21,000
[e].North Yemen Civil War
North Yemen Civil War
The North Yemen Civil War was fought in North Yemen between royalists of the Mutawakkilite Kingdom of Yemen and factions of the Yemen Arab Republic from 1962 to 1970. The war began with a coup d'état carried out by the republican leader, Abdullah as-Sallal, which dethroned the newly crowned Imam...
100,000-200,000 casualties
- 1962 Coup d'état in Yemen
- Ramadan offensive
- Haradh offensive
- Royalist offensive 1965
- Siege of Sana'a 1967
[f].Lebanese Civil War
Lebanese Civil War
The Lebanese Civil War was a multifaceted civil war in Lebanon. The war lasted from 1975 to 1990 and resulted in an estimated 150,000 to 230,000 civilian fatalities. Another one million people were wounded, and today approximately 350,000 people remain displaced. There was also a mass exodus of...
150,000 mortal casualties of:
- Bus massacreBus MassacreThe Bus Massacre, also known as the ‘Ain el-Rammaneh incident’ , was the collective name given to a short series of armed clashes involving Lebanese Christian and Palestinian elements in the streets of central Beirut, which is commonly presented as the spark that set off the Lebanese Civil War in...
- 27 killed - Hundred Days' War - 160 killed
- Karantina massacreKarantina MassacreThe Karantina massacre took place early in the Lebanese Civil War on January 18, 1976. With the breakdown in authority of the Lebanese government the militancy of radical factions increased...
- 1,000-1,500 killed - Damour massacreDamour massacreThe Damour massacre took place on January 20, 1976 during the 1975–1990 Lebanese Civil War. Damour, a Christian town on the main highway south of Beirut, was attacked by the Palestine Liberation Organisation units...
- 684 killed - attle of the Hotels - 700 killed
- Black Saturday (Lebanon)Black Saturday (Lebanon)Black Saturday was a series of massacres and armed clashes in Beirut, that occurred in the first stages of the Lebanese Civil War.On Saturday December 6, 1975, the bodies of four members of the rightist Kataeb Party , an organization grouping primarily Maronite Christians, were found in an...
- 200-600 killed - Tel al-Zaatar massacreTel al-Zaatar MassacreThe Tel al-Zaatar massacre took place during the Lebanese Civil War on August 12, 1976. Tel al-Zaatar was a UNRWA administered Palestinian Refugee camp housing approximately 50,000-60,000 refugees in northeast Beirut.-Background:...
- 1,778-3,278 killed - 1982 Lebanon War1982 Lebanon WarThe 1982 Lebanon War , , called Operation Peace for Galilee by Israel, and later known in Israel as the Lebanon War and First Lebanon War, began on 6 June 1982, when the Israel Defense Forces invaded southern Lebanon...
- 28,280 killed - Sabra and Shatila massacreSabra and Shatila massacreThe Sabra and Shatila massacre took place in the Sabra and Shatila Palestinian refugee camps in Beirut, Lebanon between September 16 and September 18, 1982, during the Lebanese civil war. Palestinian and Lebanese civilians were massacred in the camps by Christian Lebanese Phalangists while the camp...
- 762-3,500 killed - War of the CampsWar of the campsThe War of the Camps was a subconflict within the 1984–89 phase of the Lebanese Civil War, in which Palestinian refugee camps were besieged by the Shi'ite Amal militia....
(1986-1987) - 3,781 killed - Mountain War - 1,600 killed
- War of Liberation (1989-1990)
[g].Iran-Iraq war
Iran-Iraq War
The Iran–Iraq War was an armed conflict between the armed forces of Iraq and Iran, lasting from September 1980 to August 1988, making it the longest conventional war of the twentieth century...
500,000-1,200,000 mortal casualties (combined death count 184,000+) of
- Iraqi invasion 1980
- Mujahedin al-Halq uprising 1981-1982
- Liberation of KhorramshahrLiberation of KhorramshahrThe Liberation of Khorramshahr was the Iranian recapture of the port city of Khorramshahr from the Iraqis on May 24, 1982 during the Iran–Iraq War. The Iraqis had captured the city early in the war on October 26, 1980. The successful retaking of the city was part of Operation Beit ol-Moqaddas...
1982 - 17,000 casualties - Operation Undeniable VictoryOperation Undeniable VictoryOperation Undeniable Victory also known as Operation Fath-ol-Mobeen was an Iranian operation conducted during the Iran-Iraq War, in March 1982....
1982 - 50,000 mortal casualties - Operation RamadanOperation RamadanOperation Ramadan was an offensive in the Iran-Iraq War. It was launched by Iran in July 1982 near Basra and featured the use of human wave attacks in one of the largest land battles since World War II...
1982 - 80,000 killed - Kurdish Rebellion 1983-1988Kurdish Rebellion of 1983The Kurdish Rebellion of 1983 occurred during the Iran-Iraq war as Kurds of northern Iraq rebelled against Saddam Hussein, in an attempt to form their own autonomous country. The most violent stage of this rebellion was the al-Anfal campaign of the Iraqi Army against the Kurdish minority, which...
(including the Al-Anfal CampaignAl-Anfal CampaignThe al-Anfal Campaign , also known as Operation Anfal or simply Anfal, was a genocidal campaign against the Kurdish people in Northern Iraq, led by the Iraqi regime of Saddam Hussein and headed by Ali Hassan al-Majid in the final stages of Iran-Iraq War...
) 160,000-312,000 killed - Operation before the DawnOperation Before the DawnOperation Before the Dawn was the first of the three costly human-wave attacks of 1983 in the Amarah area 200 kilometers southeast of Baghdad. It was launched by Iran.-Prelude:...
1983 - 6,000+ killed - Operation Dawn 3Operation Dawn 3Operation Dawn 3 or Operation Valfajr-3 was Iran's worst defeat out of all the Dawn operations. 180,000 Iranian troops participated in this attack but withering Iraqi firepower in support of deeply entrenched troops slaughtered the advancing Iranians....
- 162,000 killed - Operation Dawn 5 1984 - 50,000 killed
- Operation Dawn 6Operation Dawn 6Operation Dawn 6 was a military operation conducted by the forces of the Islamic Republic of Iran against the armed forces of Saddam Hussein's Iraq...
1984 - Operation Khaibar 1984 - 49,000 killed
- Tanker War 1984
- Operation Badr (1985) - 30,000-32,000
- War of the Cities 1985-1987
- Operation Dawn-8 1986
- Operation Karbala-4Operation Karbala-4Operation Karbala-4 was an Iranian offensive in the Iran-Iraq War on the southern front. The operation was launced after the failure of Operation Karbala-2 and Operation Karbala-3 to move the Iraqi lines in an effort to capture Iraqi territory.-Prelude:...
1986 - 15,000 killed - Operation Karbala-5Operation Karbala-5Operation Karbala-5 was an offensive carried out by Iran in an effort to capture the Iraqi port city of Basra in early 1987. This battle, known for its extensive casualties and ferocious conditions, was the biggest battle of the war and proved to be the beginning of the end of the Iran-Iraq...
- 85,000 killed - Operation Nasr 4Operation Nasr 4Operation Nasr-4 was a successful Iranian offensive in Iraqi Kurdistan.-Prelude:After Operation Karbala 5 the southern front had come to a complete halt, while Iran was losing in the central front. The only place Iran could still rely on to win the war was the North...
- Operation Karbala-10
- Operation MersadOperation MersadOperation Mersad was the name given by the Iranian government to its successful counterattack against a July 1988 military incursion from Iraq by a military force of about 7000 members of the People's Mujahedin of Iran, armed and equipped and given air support by Saddam's Iraq...
1987 - 4,900 killed - 1988 executions of Iranian political prisoners 2,000 - 30,000 executed
[h].Iraq War
- 2003 invasion of Iraq2003 invasion of IraqThe 2003 invasion of Iraq , was the start of the conflict known as the Iraq War, or Operation Iraqi Freedom, in which a combined force of troops from the United States, the United Kingdom, Australia and Poland invaded Iraq and toppled the regime of Saddam Hussein in 21 days of major combat operations...
- Civil war in Iraq 2006-2008
[i].Arab Spring
Arab Spring
The Arab Spring , otherwise known as the Arab Awakening, is a revolutionary wave of demonstrations and protests occurring in the Arab world that began on Saturday, 18 December 2010...
in Syria, Yemen, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Oman and Bahrain, combined casualty figure 5,600-7,400:
- 2011 Syrian uprising2011 Syrian uprisingThe 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...
- 2,816-4,500
killed
- 2011 Yemeni uprising2011 Yemeni uprisingThe 2011 Yemen Uprising followed the initial stages of the Tunisian Revolution and occurred simultaneously with the Egyptian Revolution and other mass protests in the Middle East in early 2011. In its early phase, protests in Yemen were initially against unemployment, economic conditions and...
- 1,784-1,870 killed - 2011 Egyptian revolution2011 Egyptian revolutionThe 2011 Egyptian revolution took place following a popular uprising that began on Tuesday, 25 January 2011 and is still continuing as of November 2011. The uprising was mainly a campaign of non-violent civil resistance, which featured a series of demonstrations, marches, acts of civil...
- 846 killed
- Aftermath of the Egyptian RevolutionTimeline of the 2011 Egyptian revolution under Supreme Council of the Armed ForcesThe following is a chronological summary of the major events that occurred during the 2011 Egyptian revolution, after Hosni Mubarak's resignation as the fourth President of Egypt on 11 February.-12–15 February:...
- 62-72 killed
- Aftermath of the Egyptian Revolution
- 2011 Bahraini uprising2011 Bahraini uprisingThe 2011 Bahraini uprising, sometimes called the February 14 Revolution is a series of demonstrations, amounting to a sustained campaign of civil resistance, in the Persian Gulf country of Bahrain...
- 46 killed - 2011 Lebanese protests2011 Lebanese protestsThe 2011 Lebanese protests have been seen as influenced by the Arab Spring. The main protests focused on calls for political reform especially against confessionalism in Lebanon.- Political system :...
- 18 killed - 2011 Omani protests2011 Omani protestsThe 2011 Omani protests were a series of protests in the Gulf country of Oman. They were a part of the revolutionary wave popularly known as the Arab Spring. It's the first protest to be ended among the Arab Spring....
- 2-6 killed - 2011 Saudi Arabian protests2011 Saudi Arabian protestsThe 2011 Saudi Arabian protests have been influenced by the Arab Spring that started with the 2011 Tunisian revolution. One of the main online organisers of a planned 11 March "Day of Rage", Faisal Ahmed Abdul-Ahad , was alleged to have been killed by Saudi security forces on 2 March, by which time...
- 6 killed
See also
- List of modern conflicts in North Africa (the Maghreb region)
- List of conflicts in Asia
- List of conflicts in the Arab League