9/11 Terrorist Attacks

On September 11, 2001, 19 terrorists from al-Qaeda hijacked four commercial airplanes. Two planes were flown into the Twin Towers of the World Trade Center in New York, each 110 stories high, killing all passengers on board and many inside the buildings. Both towers collapsed within two hours. A third plane struck the Pentagon, the U.S. Department of Defense headquarters. In total, including the hijackers, 2,749 people lost their lives.

War in Afghanistan, 2001–2011

In response to the 9/11 attacks, the United States led a coalition to invade Afghanistan on October 7, 2001. The goal was to capture al-Qaeda leaders, including Osama bin Laden, and punish the Taliban for supporting terrorists.

On December 1, 2009, newly inaugurated President Barack Obama announced a six-month surge of 30,000 troops to Afghanistan, with a gradual withdrawal starting in July 2011 and full withdrawal planned by the end of 2014. At its peak, coalition forces included 100,000 U.S. troops, 10,000 British troops, 4,300 German troops, and 3,750 French troops.

Iraq War, 2003–2011

The Iraq War, from March 2003 to December 2011, involved a coalition led by the U.S. with 120,000 American troops, 45,000 British troops, 2,000 Australian troops, 200 Polish troops, and 50,000 Iraqi insurgents. President George W. Bush justified the invasion by citing intelligence reports that Iraq possessed weapons of mass destruction. No such weapons were found, and public opinion in the U.S. largely considered the war a mistake.