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The Afghanistan War Encyclopedia cover
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Pre-order. Available May 14 2026
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Description

Discover the complexities of the Afghanistan War, the United States' longest military operation and a conflict with far-reaching impacts in Afghanistan and around the globe.

In this accessible ready-reference encyclopedia, more than 200 entries highlight key people, groups, battles, and concepts and provide valuable insights into the causes, course, and legacy of this lengthy conflict. Cross referencing and further readings accompany each entry, helping readers make connections and pointing them toward resources for additional study. The main text is complemented by a chronology that provides an at-a-glance overview of important events, allowing readers to trace the evolution of the invasion and occupation of Afghanistan.

The 2001 U.S.-led war in Afghanistan, launched in response to 9/11, aimed to dismantle Al-Qaeda and topple the Taliban regime. While the initial invasion achieved these goals, the war transformed into a long and costly struggle against insurgents. Despite efforts to build a new Afghan state, the conflict quickly became a stalemate. The 2021 withdrawal by the United States and NATO and the subsequent return to power of the Taliban ended a war with a complex legacy. The protracted conflict reshaped the United States' role in the world, highlighted the challenges of nation-building, and has left the future of Afghanistan uncertain.

Table of Contents

Preface
The Afghanistan War: An Overview
Chronology of the Afghanistan War


Abdullah, Abdullah
Afghan National Army
Afghan Civil War
Afghanistan, Border Disputes
Afghanistan, Climate and Geography of
Afghanistan, Ethnic Groups in
Afghanistan, Nationalism within
Afghanistan-Pakistan Border Raids (2002-)
Afghanistan, Withdrawal from
Airborne Units and Tactics
Akhundzada, Mawlawi Hibatullah
Al Qaeda
Atef, Muhammad

Bagram Air Base
Bales, Robert
Barno, David William
Bergdahl, Bowe, Release of
Berntsen, Gary
Bhutto, Benazir
Biden, Joseph
Bin Laden, Osama
Blair, Tony
Bonn Agreement
Buddhas of Bamiyan
Bush, George W.
Bush Doctrine

Campbell, John Francis
Casualties, Civilian
Casualties, Operation Enduring Freedom
Central Intelligence Agency (CIA)
Central Intelligence Agency in Afghanistan
Clinton, Bill
Coalition, Forces and Tactics
Coalition Force Land Component Command–Afghanistan
Cold War
Combined Forces Command, Afghanistan
Combined Joint Task Force 180
Combined Security Transition Command–Afghanistan
Communications in Military Operations
Cone, Robert
Cruise Missile Strikes on Afghanistan and Sudan

Dadullah, Mullah
Deobandi School
Dobbins, James
Doha Accords
Dostum, Abd al-Rashid
Drone Strikes
Durand Line

Eikenberry, Karl W.
Embassy Bombings
Extortion 17 Shootdown

Fallon, William Joseph
FOB Chapman Attack
Franks, Tommy
Friendly Fire
Frontier Corps

Gates, Robert Michael
Ghani, Mohammad Ashraf
Green on Blue Incidents
Guantanamo Bay Detention Facility
Gul, Hamid

Hagenbeck, Franklin L.
Haq, Abdul
Haqqani, Jalaluddin
Haqqani Network
Hekmatyar, Gulbuddin al-Hurra
Helmand Valley
Holbrooke, Richard Charles Albert
Hostages and Kidnapping
Humanitarian Aid Operations

Improvised Explosive Devices (IEDs)
India, Relations with Afghanistan
Indian Embassy Bombing in Kabul
Inter Services Intelligence (ISI) Directorate of Pakistan
International Security Assistance Force (ISAF)
Iran (Persia), Relations with Afghanistan
Iraq War
Islamic Movement of Afghanistan (Harakat-i Islami-yi Afghanistan)
Islamic Party (Hezb-e Islami)
Islamic Revolutionary Movement (Harakati Inqilabi Islami)
Islamic Society (Jamiat-e Islami, JIA)
Islamic State (ISIS, ISIL, DAESH)
Islamic Unity Party of Afghanistan (Hezb-e Wahdat-e Islami Afghanistan)

Jihad

Kabul
Kabulov, Zamir
Kamdesh, Battle of
Kamiya, Jason K.
Karzai, Hamid
Kazemi, Syed Mustafa
Khalilzad, Zalmay Mamozy
Khalis, Mohammad Yunus
Khan, Jan Mohammed
Khan, Mohammed Ismail
Khyber Pass

Landmines
Lashkar-e Jhangvi (LeJ)
Lashkar-e Taiba (LeT)
Lindh, John Phillip Walker
Loya Jirga

Madrasahs
Mansour, Mullah Akhtar Mohammad
Marja, Battle of
Massoud, Ahmed Shah
Mazar-e Sharif, Battle of
McChrystal, Stanley A.
McKiernan, David Deglan
McNeill, Dan K.
Mine-Resistant Ambush-Protected Vehicles
Mohaqeq, Mohammed
Mohammed, Khalid Sheikh
Mojadeddi, Sibghatullah
Monti, Jared Christopher
Muhsini, Ayatollah Asef
Mujahideen
Mulholland, John
Mullen, Michael Glenn
Murphy, Michael Patrick
Musharraf, Pervez

Nadiri, Sayyid Mansur
Narcoterrorism
Nation Building and Economic Development in Afghanistan
National Front of Afghanistan (Jabhe Melli)
National Islamic Front of Afghanistan (Mahaz-I Milli Islami)
National Islamic Movement of Afghanistan (Jumbish-i Milli Islami Afghanistan)
National Liberation Front (Jabha-i Najat-i Milli)
Navigation Satellite Timing and Ranging Global Positioning System
Nawaz Sharif, Muhammad
Nongovernmental Organizations and Private Volunteer Organizations
North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO)
Northern Alliance
Nur, Muhammad Atta

Obaidullah, Akhund
Obama, Barack
Office of Military Cooperation Afghanistan
Omar, Mullah Mohammed
Operation Achilles
Operation Anaconda
Operation Avalanche
Operation Enduring Freedom, Initial Ground Campaign
Operation Enduring Freedom, Planning for
Operation Enduring Freedom, U.S. Air Campaign
Operation Freedom's Sentinel
Operation Jacana
Operation Medusa
Operation Mountain Thrust
Operations Red Wings I, II, and Whalers
Operation Resolute Support
Opium Poppy Production

Pakistan, Relations with Afghanistan
Panetta, Leon Edward
Pashtunization
Pearl, Daniel
Petraeus, David
Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder
Powell, Colin Luther
Precision-Guided Weapons
Provincial Reconstruction Teams
Psychological Operations in Afghanistan

Qala-i-Jangi, Battle of

Rabbani, Burhannudin
Rabbani, Mullah Mohammed
Richards, Sir David
Rumsfeld, Donald
Russia (Soviet Union), Relations with Afghanistan

Saur Revolution
Sayyaf, Abdurab Rasul
Schroen, Gary C.
Security Firms and Defense Contractors
September 11, 2001 Attacks and Aftermath
Shah, Mullah Ahmed
Soviet Invasion and Occupation of Afghanistan
Special Operations Forces
Status of Forces Agreement, U.S.-Afghanistan
Sunni Islam

Takur Ghar, Battle of
Taliban
Taliban, Forces and Tactics
Taliban Insurgency
Tanai, Shahnawaz
Task Force Dagger
Task Force Phoenix
Terrorism
Tillman, Patrick Daniel
Tora Bora, Battle of
Transport and Logistics
Troop Surge, U.S.
Trump, Donald

United Kingdom Forces in Afghanistan
United Kingdom (Great Britain), Relations with Afghanistan
United Nations
United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan
United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization
United States, Forces and Tactics
United States, Relations with Afghanistan
United States Agency for International Development, Afghanistan
United States Air Force
United States Army
United States Central Command
United States Marine Corps
United States Navy
United States Special Operations Command
Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs)

Wahhabism
Wanat, Battle of
War Correspondents
Wardak, Abdul Rahim
Warlords
Women, Role in Combat

Zahir Shah, Mohammed
Zardari, Asif Ali
Zawahiri, Ayman al-


Bibliography
About the Editors and Contributors
Index

Product details

Bloomsbury Academic Test
Published May 14 2026
Format Hardback
Edition 1st
Extent 416
ISBN 9781440870453
Imprint Bloomsbury Academic
Illustrations 30 bw
Dimensions 10 x 7 inches
Publisher Bloomsbury Publishing

About the contributors

Anthology Editor

Ryan Wadle

Ryan Wadle, PhD, is associate professor of Compara…

Anthology Editor

Paul J. Springer

Paul J. Springer is a professor of comparative mil…

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