The Flag of Poland

New page now online which looks at the wars of Poland from about 1600 to the Present.

At: http://www.historyguy.com/wars_of_poland.htm

at: http://www.historyguy.com/worldwartwo/wars_of_1939.htm

key words for this page include: war, wars, 1939, world war one, spanish civil war, spain, france, britain, germany, italy, albania, ethiopia, poland, sino-japanese war, arab revolt, palestine revolt, german occupation, occupation of czechoslovakia, occupation of memel, occupation of klaipeda, lithuania, slovak-hungarian war, little war, italian invasion of albania, chile coup 1939, ariostazo coup, soviet-japanese border war, battle of khalkhin gol, nomonhan, german invasion of poland, case white, fall weiss, soviet invasion of poland, world war two starts, poland invasion, winter war, finland, russia, soviet union, russian invasion.

http://www.historyguy.com/twitter.htm or http://twitter.com/historyguycom

There is a new web page on the historyguy.com site detailing some of these Sino-Tibetan Wars and Conflicts.  It is at: http://www.historyguy.com/tibet_china_wars_conflicts.html

While normally I take as neutral a position as possible while explaining world conflicts on the main historyguy.com website, and leaving my more opinionated commentary for this blog, I come down against the continued repression by the Chinese Communist Party in Tibet.  I see a distinction in identifying the brutality and evil of the occupation as sourced in the Communist ideology than in any innately Chinese cultural aspects.  When an authoritarian, dictatorial regime conquers a smaller, basically defenseless nation, it can never be justified.  I liken the Chinese occupation of Tibet with the other evil occupations of history, such as the Nazi occupation of Czechoslovakia, or the Soviet conquest of the Baltic States (Latvia, Lithuania, and Estonia).

Those once-captive nations eventually regained their freedom, and one day too, Tibet may once again see the back-end of the Communist occupying forces, just as, after the 1911 Revolution, Tibet saw the last of the Manchu Imperial occupation army.   

Below is a look at America’s major wars and their length in months. Time periods are rounded up or down for ease of comparison. Current conflicts are italicized and are colored red. The longest wars are listed first in descending order by length. The start dates reflect when the United States entered the wars.

Vietnam War–August, 1964 to April, 1975= 129   months (American involvement began in the late    1950s, but major U.S. combat forces began taking part in large-unit combat in 1964.  August, 1964 is the month of the Gulf of Tonkin incident and the U.S. bombing of North Vietnamese targets.)       

American Revolution–April, 1775 to September, 1783= 100    months

Afghanistan–    October, 2001 to Present (as of March, 2008)= 78    months

Iraq War–March,    2003 to Present (as of March, 2008)= 60 months

U.S. Civil War–April, 1861 to April, 1865= 48    months

World War II–December, 1941 to September, 1945= 45    months

World War I–April, 1917 to November, 1918= 19    months

Korean War– June, 1950 to July, 1953= 37 months

War of 1812–June, 1812 to February, 1815= 32 months

U.S.-Mexican War– May, 1846 to February, 1848= 21    months

Spanish-American War–April, 1898 to August, 1898= 5    months

Gulf War–January, 1991 to March, 1991= 3 months

Source:  http://www.historyguy.com/american_wars_by_length_of_time.html

Albanians and Serbs are quite different in terms of language, religion and culture. Ever since Serbia acquired Kosovo in the First Balkan War (1912), conflict between these two groups has erupted periodically in this disputed region.

Below is a listing of these conflicts accompanied by a brief description.

NOTE: For the purposes of categorizing these conflicts, the term "Kosovo War" is used to name the wars between Serbs and Kosovar Albanians. Also, the use of the Serb term "Kosovo" rather than the Albanian version "Kosova" is not meant to imply favoritism or bias. "Kosovo" is the name that most Americans and Westerners know the region by and that is the name used here for clarity.

First Kosovo War (1912-1913)–In the brief First Balkan War (1912-1913), Serbia, along with other Balkan nations, succeeded in ending Ottoman Turkish rule in south-eastern Europe. As a consequence of this war, Albania became independent and the largely Albanian-inhabited region of Kosovo became a part of Serbia. Serbs had long claimed this area, citing its history as a part of the Serbian Kingdom which existed in the Middle Ages.

The Kosovars had already begun a rebellion against the Turks and wished to join with the new nation of Albania. Occupying Serb and Montenegrin troops and Kosovo guerrillas clashed. In the fighting and subsequent repression, approximately 20,000 Kosovars perished, while tens of thousands more fled to other countries. Many atrocities were carried out by the "kamitadjis," Serb paramilitary forces which officially operated independently of the Serb army but engaged in brutal repression of the civilian population. Note that in the Bosnian and Kosovo Wars of the 1990’s, Serb paramilitary forces in the same vein as the kamitadjis operated freely.

Second Kosovo War (1915-1918)–This conflict can be considered a part of World War One. Serbia was invaded by the armies of Austria-Hungary, Germany and Bulgaria (along with Turkey they were known as "The Central Powers"). The Serb army and government fled before the armies of the Central Powers in the winter of 1915. They marched through the mountains of Kosovo and Albania toward the sea where naval ships of the British and French (known as "The Allies") rescued them to continue the war from bases in Greece. During this retreat through Albanian-populated areas, the Kosovars exacted revenge on the Serbs for their conquest a few years earlier. Albanian guerrillas ambushed small units, killed and mutilated soldiers who became cut off from the main Serb forces and generally made the retreat as difficult as possible for the Serb army. Between the attacking Central Powers, the Albanians and the weather, roughly half of the 300,000 Serb soldiers who began the retreat never made it to the sea. The Albanian rebels, or "kaçaks" as they were called, also fought against the Austro-Hungarian and Bulgarian occupiers of Kosovo.

Third Kosovo War (1918-1924)–With the defeat of the Central Powers, Serbia joined with Montenegro and the formerly Austro-Hungarian areas of Slovenia, Bosnia and Croatia to form the new nation of Yugoslavia. The new kingdom’s government and army were dominated by Serbs. The king of Serbia became the first king of Yugoslavia, and the Yugoslav army was created with the old Serb army as its nucleus.

The Serb/Yugoslav army reoccupied Kosovo in 1918 but faced resistance from the Albanian Kosovar kaçaks, who did not want a return to Serb rule. As the army re-imposed government rule, many atrocities occurred, in part fueled by Serb desire for revenge over the harassment they suffered in the retreat of 1915. Massacres and the burning of villages were tactics employed to break the back of the rebel resistance. The Yugoslav government also banned the teaching of the Albanian language in the schools and encouraged immigration of Serbs and Montenegrins into Kosovo from other parts of Yugoslavia.

The rebels based in northern Albania formed the Committee for National Defense of Kosovo, also known as the Kosovo Committee or "KK" for short. The KK smuggled arms across the border and conducted raids against government forces. In May, 1919, the KK called for a mass uprising in Kosovo, and nearly 10,000 poorly armed rebels were driven into the mountains by a Yugoslav army equipped with modern machine guns and artillery. The KK continued the guerrilla struggle from bases in northern Albania until 1924. In that year, Yugoslavia’s military helped Ahmed Zogu, Albania’s former Prime Minister, regain power. In 1923, the KK had aided in Zogu’s overthrow from their bases in northern Albania. In return for Yugoslavia’s military aid, Zogu (who later became King Zog), closed down the KK’s guerrilla bases and effectively ejected them from Albania. This brought an end to the armed struggle in Kosovo.

Fourth Kosovo War (1941-1944)–This conflict can be considered a part of World War Two. In 1941, Germany, Italy and Bulgaria (the "Axis") invaded Yugoslavia and divided the country between them. Kosovo was occupied by the Italians, who attached it to Albania, which had been conquered by Italy in 1939. Most Kosovar Albanians welcomed the Italian occupiers, especially when Axis forces stood by and did not interfere as gangs of Kosovar Albanians attacked Serb and Montenegrin settlers. It is estimated that between 3,000 and 10,000 Serbs died and 30,000 and 100,000 fled Kosovo in this period. After Italy’s surrender to the Allies on September 8, 1943, German forces occupied Kosovo and Albania. The Germans encouraged attacks against the Serbs and used local Albanians to help them round up local Jews for their death camps.

While no extensive resistance to the Axis developed in Kosovo, most of the central portion (Bosnia-Hercegovina and Montenegro) of the old Yugoslavia was embroiled in bloody warfare against the Germans and Italians. The Communist Partisan army of Josip Broz Tito waged an effective guerrilla campaign which tied down hundreds of thousands of Axis soldiers. Most Kosovo Albanians distrusted the Partisans due to the perception that it was a largely Serbian organization and because most Muslim Albanians were anti-Communist. Some Kosovo Partisan units were formed and began striking at Axis forces in early 1943, but by and large, the Communist Partisan organization in Kosovo was quite weak.

In order to encourage more Kosovo Albanian participation in the war against the Axis, Tito announced in January, 1944, that after the war Kosovo would have the right to secede from Yugoslavia and join with Albania. Tito never intended to abide by this declaration and when Partisan units liberated Kosovo from the Germans in late 1944, a new conflict began in the Drenica valley of Kosovo.

Drenica Rebellion (or Polluzha’s Rebellion) (Late 1944-March 1945)–Shaban Polluzha was a Kosovar Albanian Partisan leader who believed Tito’s declaration that Kosovo could join with Albania. When he was ordered to take his 8,000 Kosovo Partisans north into Croatia to combat German troops, he refused, sparking an attack by the Titoist Partisan army. It is estimated that 20,000 Kosovar Albanians joined his rebellion. During the fighting and later Yugoslav Partisan reprisals, some 44 villages were reported destroyed. Tito’s forces put down the rebellion completely. After the war, Tito became the dictator of a Communist Yugoslavia. During his reign, Tito managed to suppress nationalist and ethnic tensions thoughout Yugoslavia.

Pristina Student Demonstrations (Spring, 1981)–After Tito’s death in 1980, Yugoslavia began to show signs of dissolution. On March 11, 1981, a small university student demonstration in Kosovo’s capital of Pristina turned into a general plea for democracy and Albanian nationalism. The students were somewhat influenced by the recent rise of the Solidarity movement in Communist Poland. On March 26, students and police clashed, leaving 37 injured. High school students and factory workers joined the protests demanding either Kosovo independence or union with Albania. At this point, Yugoslav special police with tanks entered Pristina. In the violence that followed, the government claims only eleven died and 57 were injured. Other reports put the death toll at hundreds. After the protests were broken up, thousands were arrested and put on trial.

It should be noted though, that administration of Kosovo was in the hands of local Albanian Communists, and this should not be interpreted as a strictly Serb-Albanian conflict. The protests were directed more at the Yugoslav government as a whole.

Sixth Kosovo War (1998-1999)–The Kosovo Liberation Army began a guerrilla war in February, 1998 against Serb Yugoslav authority. On March 24, 1999, in response to atrocities committed by the Serbs and their unwillingness to negotiate at the peace table (The Rambouillet Conference), the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) began a 78-day air campaign which succeeded in causing Serb leader Slobodan Milosovic to withdraw his army from Kosovo.

Kosovo Secession from Serbia (Feb. 17, 2008)–After existing as a UN-Administered part of Serbia since the 1998-1999 Kosovo War, the government of Kosovo declared its independence from Serbia. The Serbian government opposed this secession.

LINK: http://www.historyguy.com/kosovar_serb_warfare.html

SOURCES:

1. Judah, Tim. Kosovo: War and Revenge. New Haven: Yale University Press, 2000.

2. Ignatieff, Michael. Virtual War: Kosovo and Beyond. New York: Metropolitan Books, 2000.

3. Stavrianos, L.S. The Balkans Since 1453. New York,New York: Holt, Rinehart and Winston, 1966.

History: Independent Albania–http://www.albanian.com/main/history/independent.html

Please cite this source when appropriate:

Lee, Roger A. "The History Guy: Warfare and Conflict Between Kosovar Albanians and Serbs Since 1912"

http://www.historyguy.com/kosovar_serb_warfare.html 

Copyright © 1998-2008 Roger A. Lee and History Guy Media; Last Modified: 02.17.08

1st Anglo-Iraq War: May 1920 to Feb. 1921

The Great Iraqi Revolution (known in Iraq as Ath Thawra al Iraqiyya al Kubra and by the British as the Arab Revolt of 1920-Rebellion by Iraqi Arabs against the rule of the British Mandate. The rebellion was suppressed by the British military. This can be considered the First Anglo-Iraqi War.

The immediate causes of this conflict arose out of the results of the British conquest of the Mesopotamian region from the Ottoman Turks during World War I. Following that war, the British established, with League of Nations approval, a colonial-style Mandate over the region now named “Iraq.” Many Iraqi nationalists, who believed independence would result from the ejection of the Turks, were severely disappointed with the establishment of the British Mandate. Other, related events and issues also inflamed Iraqi Arab opinion against the British. The Mandate government almost completely excluded Iraqis, as the British imported experienced civil servants from India (also ruled by Britain) to help administer the country. In northern Iraq, the British allowed thousands of Christian refugees escaping persecution in Turkey, to settle in mostly Muslim Iraq.

2nd Anglo-Iraq War: April 18, 1941 to May 30, 1941

The Anglo-Iraqi War of 1941, also known as the Rashid Ali Coup, was a relatively small, but very significant part of the Second World War. Since the ending of the British Mandate and the advent of full Iraqi independence in 1932, Britain retained a great deal of military influence in Iraq, despite lingering opposition from many Arab nationalists. One of these nationalists, Rashid Ali, seized power in Baghdad and refused British requests to allow British military forces to enter Iraq. Britain at this time was fighting German and Italian forces in North Africa and were preparing to invade Vichy French-held Syria. (The Vichy French were working with the Germans and British and Free French forces needed to secure the region). Believing promises of German support, Rashid Ali ordered his forces to attack British bases in western Iraq and to oppose the landing of British forces at the southern city of Basra. German support appeared in the form of a small number of Luftwaffe fighter planes, and the British forces quickly defeated the Iraqi military.

3rd Anglo-Iraq War: Aug. 2, 1990 to Feb. 1991

The Second Persian Gulf War (Also known as “Operation Desert Storm”)— On August 2, 1990, Iraqi forces invaded and quickly conquered the small, oil-rich emirate of Kuwait. Almost immediately, an international coalition of nations gathered a powerful military force under the authority of the United Nations and the leadership of the United States, first to defend the oil-rich kingdom of Saudi Arabia, and secondly, to force Iraq to withdraw from occupied Kuwait. From the beginning of the crisis, the United Kingdom, led by Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher, worked very closely with the U.S. in assuming a determined posture against Saddam Hussein’s territorial ambition. Click on the blue link above for more detail on the war.

4th Anglo-Iraq War: 1991 to March 19, 2003

The "No-Fly Zone War" pitted the air and naval forces of the United States and the United Kingdom against the air defenses of Iraq. This conflict was a direct result of the agreements which ended the fighting in the Second Persian Gulf War (Also known as “Operation Desert Storm”). Click on the blue "No-Fly Zone War" link above for more detail on the war.

5th Anglo-Iraq War: March 19, 2003 to Present

The Third Persian Gulf War , known as "Operation Telic" by the British, and "Operation Iraqi Freedom" by the U.S., ousted Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein from power and led to the occupation of Iraq by British and American forces. Click on the blue link above for more detail on the war.

Please cite this source when appropriate:

Lee, R. "The History Guy: Anglo-Iraq Wars

http://www.historyguy.com/anglo-iraq_wars.html

The fighting began in 2004, when Pakistan’s army entered the region inhabited by the Waziri tribe in search al-Qaida and Taliban fighters who were using Waziristan as a base for attacks against American and Allied forces in Afghanistan.

Since the fighting began, Pakistani forces suffer almost daily casualties due to roadside bombs and ambushes. The authority of the central government is almost nonexistent in the rebellious tribal borderlands.

The United States aids the Pakistani forces with intelligence information and with tactical air strikes on suspected rebel bases and safe houses. The best known U.S. airstrike occurred at the village of Damadola, on January 13, 2006. The attack occurred in the Bajaur tribal area, about 4.5 miles) from the Afghan border. This Predator-drone attack killed at least 18 people, including several non-Waziri foreign al-Qaida fighters.

In July, 2007, following nearly ten months of an uneasy peace, the Islamic militants of Waziristan once again began fighting the Pakistani government in response to the siege and army assault on the Red Mosque in Islamabad. The Red Mosque had been held by Islamic militants and the Pakistani Army ousted the militants in a bloody battle.

The U.S. had been quietly critical of Musharaff’s government for letting the militants in the Waziristan border region regroup during the ten-month truce. After the border region violence renewed, Washington offered assistance to Pakistan in terms of arms and other aid. Rumors of possible American intervention against the Taliban and al-Qaida in Waziristan sparked a rebuke from the Pakistani government that any such cross-border action would be opposed.

Reports: Pak Army strikes in Waziristan–July 25, 2007

US points out 9 terror camps in Waziristan–July 25, 2007

60 dead in Pakistan border fighting  –April 4, 2007

Copyright © 1998-2007 Roger A. Lee and History Guy Media; Last Modified: 10.07.07

"The History Guy" is a Registered Trademark.

The War on Terror, or the Long War, as some have come to call the current world war the U.S. is waging on Islamic extremists, has relied on Pakistan’s relative stability as a bulwark against the Taliban and al-Qaida.  The War in Afghanistan, which has entered its sixth year, has put a great deal of pressure on neighboring Pakistan.  The Taliban and al-Qaida use the mountainous border region for bases and for recruitment of new fighters.  Keeping Pakistan in the fight against the terrorists is vital for American strategy, yet Musharraf has made American support for his regime all the more difficult with his heavy-handed repression of political dissent.

This state of emergency will only embolden the Islamic militants in Pakistan, giving them more legitimacy as "freedom fighters" against an American-supported military dictatorship.  Meanwhile, by suppressing the free press and the legitimate non-violent political opposition, he weakens the democratic institutions that form the natural bulwark to the extremists. 

The Bush Administration is caught between a rock and a hard place in deciding how to respond to this unwelcome development.  Too much pressure on Musharraf to reverse course could drive Pakistan out of the anti-Taliban alliance.  Too little pressure will expose the cynicism and hypocrisy of America’s claim to support democracy in Iraq and elsewhere while tolerating or supporting dictatorships when convenient.  And of course, if Pakistan devolves into a spiral of violence, the militants win and at the best Pakistan is unable to control its own borders, while at the worst, an anti-Western, pro-Taliban, pro-bin Laden government takes over.  And let us not forget that Pakistan is a nuclear power.  If chaos reigns, who watches the nuclear arsenal?  Thinking people in Washington, London, Tehran, New Delhi, Kabul and elsewhere should be very worried on that point.   

Pervez Musharraf , commanding general of the Pakistani military, as well as the current president of Pakistan, is a military dictator who seized power in a military coup on October 12, 1999. In his time as Pakistan’s top general and as its political leader, he has led Pakistan into conflict with India (the Kargil Conflict), supported the Taliban in neighboring Afghanistan, become an ally of the United States against the Taliban after September 11, 2001, fought against rebels in Baluchistan, and against frontier tribes, al-Qaida and the Taliban in the resurgent Waziristan War and the Siege of the Red Mosque. Musharraf has presided over the political fragmentation of his country as he tries to suppress democracy and continue his hold on power especially with his ongoing political conflict with Pakistan’s Supreme Court and his imposition of a State of Emergency, (martial law) in early November of 2007.

Musharraf was born in Nahr wali Haveli, Delhi, British India on August 11, 1943. British India was divided between the newly independent nations of Pakistan and India, and, as Muslims, the Musharraf family migrated from Hindu-dominated India to the Muslim nation of Pakistan, along with millions of other Indian Muslims. His father was a Pakistani diplomat, reaching the position of Minister of Foreign Affairs.

Musharraf graduated in 1956 from Saint Patrick’s School in Karachi, Pakistan, and later attended Forman Christian College in Lahore. Though he is Muslim, it was then common for children of the educated elite to attend such private schools.

Musharraf entered the military in 1964, and served in the 1965 Indo-Pakistani War. He later fought in the 1971 Indo-Pakistani War (a.k.a. the Bangladesh War of Independence). Musharraf does not belong to the largely ethnic Punjabi officer class which dominates the Pakistani army. The Musharraf family are members of the Urdu ethnic group. His rise through the military is notable due to his minority status. In addition to his education as a youth, Musharraf also acquired military training in the United Kingdom. (See also: Indo-Pakistani Wars)

In 1998, General Pervez Musharraf was appointed to the position of Army Chief of Staff by Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif. The 1998-1999 Kargil Crisis and conflict, which was overseen by General Musharraf, ended as an embarrassing loss for Pakistan, and brought him into open conflict with the Prime Minister. In October, 1999, Prime Minister Sharif attempted to fire Musharraf, who then led a bloodless coup against Sharif. Immediately following the Musharraf coup, tensions with India increased, though eventually the Musharraf regime worked successfully to ease tensions with India.

Prior to the terrorist attacks on the United States on September 11, 2001, Pakistan supported the Taliban movement in neighboring Afghanistan, but Musharraf decided to work with the United States against the Taliban and al-Qaida as the U.S. and its allies invaded Afghanistan in October, 2001. Musharraf’s stance against Islamic extremists like the Taliban and al-Qaida helped lead to violence within Pakistan as those groups aided frontier tribes oppose the authority of Pakistan’s central government. Traditionally, the tribal groups along Pakistan’s Northwest Frontier have enjoyed a great deal of autonomy, and when Musharraf sent the Pakistani military to the frontier in an attempt to prevent Taliban and al-Qaida infiltration along the border (per American requests), the tribes saw this as a violation of their rights. The Taliban and al-Qaida were more than willing to aid the tribes against the government, and this border conflict became the latest War in Waziristan, as part of the frontier is known. Islamic militants have attempted to assassinate President Musharraf several times, and in the summer of 2007, violence hit the Pakistani capital with the Siege of the Red Mosque. Islamic militants led by Abdul Rashid Ghazi defied government authority, which prompted a violent army siege of an important mosque in Islamabad, resulting in hundreds of deaths.

Musharraf named himself President of Pakistan in June, 2001, and has maintained that post as well as his old position of Army Chief of Staff. The legality of his dual role has brought him into conflict with the Pakistani Supreme Court. Despite the fact that Musharraf allowed a former Prime Minister, Benazir Bhutto to return from exile, he imposed martial law in early November of 2007. This act brought condemnation from many foreign governments, including the United States. Pakistan is at the brink of serious political violence as Musharraf attempts to further consolidate power at the expense of his country’s remaining democratic institutions.

Syed Musharraf Uddin –Father

Zarin Musharraf--Mother

Sehba-Wife

Children Bilal–Son Aylaa–Daughter

Profile: Pervez Musharraf--from the BBC

Pervez Musharraf--Wikipedia Article

Pervez Musharraf–World Biography.net (sister site)

The Road to Lal Masjid and its Aftermath–By Hassan Abbas at Global Terrorism Monitor