List of conflicts in Africa

This is a list of conflicts in Africa arranged by country, both on the continent and associated islands, including wars between African nations, civil wars, and wars involving non-African nations that took place within Africa. It encompasses colonial wars, wars of independence, secessionist and separatist conflicts, major episodes of national violence (riots, massacres, etc.), and global conflicts in which Africa was a theatre of war.

African Great Lakes

Burundi

• 1972 Burundi genocide
• October 22, 1993 – August 2005 Burundi Civil War
  • December 28, 2000 Titanic Express Massacre
  • September 9, 2002 Itaba Massacre
  • August 13, 2004 Gatumba Massacre
• April 26, 2015 – 17 May 2018 Burundian unrest

Rwanda

• November 1, 1959 – July 1, 1961 Rwandan Revolution

• December 21, 1963 – December 27, 1963 Bugesera invasion

• October 1, 1990 – July 18, 1994 Rwandan Civil War

• • April 7, 1994 – July 15, 1994 Rwandan genocide

Kenya

• August 3, 1914 – November 1918 East African Campaign (World War I)
• June 10, 1940 – November 27, 1941 East African Campaign (World War II)
• 1952–1960 Mau Mau Uprising
• 1963–1967 Shifta War
• 1980 Garissa Massacre
• February 10, 1984 Wagalla massacre
• 1987–1990 Kenyan-Ugandan border conflict
• 2005 Turbi Village Massacre
• 2007–2008 Kenyan crisis

South Sudan

• May 25, 2008 – ongoing Sudanese nomadic conflicts
• January 7, 2011 – ongoing Ethnic violence in South Sudan
• May 19, 2011 – ongoing Sudan–SRF conflict
• March 26, 2012 – September 26, 2012 Sudan–South Sudan Border War (Heglig Crisis)
• December 15, 2013 – February 22, 2020 South Sudanese Civil War

Tanzania

• July 28, 1914 – November 11, 1918 World War I
• 1964 Zanzibar Revolution
• 1972 Invasion of Uganda
• 1978–1979 Uganda–Tanzania War

Uganda

• January 25, 1971 Coup d'état
• 1972 Invasion of Uganda
• July 4, 1976 Operation Entebbe
• October 30, 1978 – April 11, 1979 Uganda-Tanzania War
  • April 11, 1979 Fall of Kampala
• 1980–1985 Uganda National Rescue Front
• 1982–1986 Ugandan Civil War
• 1986–1988 Uganda People's Democratic Army
• 1986–1987 Holy Spirit Movement
• 1987–1990 Kenyan-Ugandan border conflict
• 1987–ongoing Lord's Resistance Army
• 1996–ongoing Allied Democratic Forces
• 1996–2002 Uganda National Rescue Front II

Central Africa

Cameroon

• 1804–1808 Fulani War
• 1835–1836 Fula jihads
• July 28, 1914 – November 11, 1918 World War I
• September 1, 1939 – September 2, 1945 World War II
• July 2 2006 – ongoing Bakassi conflict
• March 2014 – ongoing Boko Haram insurgency
• September 9 2017 – ongoing Anglophone Crisis

Central African Republic

• 1928–1931 Kongo-Wara rebellion
• 1987–present Lord's Resistance Army insurgency
• 2004–2007 Central African Republic Bush War
• 2012–present Central African Republic Civil War
  • 13 April 2013 – 10 January 2014 Central African Republic conflict under the Djotodia administration

Chad

Kanem Empire

• c. 1203–1243 Dunama Dabbalemi, of the Sayfawa dynasty, mai of the Kanem Empire, declared jihad against the surrounding tribes and initiated an extended period of conquest
• c. 1342 – c. 1388 Fall of Kanem
  • c. 1342 – c. 1352 Sao Resurgence
  • c. 1376 – c. 1388 Bulala Invasion

French Chad

• 1909–1911 Ouaddai War
• 1915 – 15 November 1917 Massacre des coupes-coupes (in Arabic: Kabkab Massacre, مجزرة كبكب)

Republic of Chad

• 1 November 1965 Mangalmé riots
• 1965–2010 War in Chad
  • 1965–2010 Chadian Civil War
    • 1965–1970 Civil war in Chad
    • 1979–1982 Civil war in Chad
    • 1998–2002 Civil war in Chad
  • 18 December 2005 – 15 January 2010 Civil war in Chad
    • 18 December 2005 Battle of Adré
    • 6 January 2006 Borota raid
    • 6 March 2006 Amdjereme raid
    • 13 April 2006 Battle of N'Djamena
    • 1 May 2006 Dalola raid
    • 2–4 February 2008 Battle of N'Djamena
    • 18 June 2008 Battle of Am Zoer
    • 7 May 2009 Battle of Am Dam
    • 24–28 April 2010 Battle of Tamassi
  • 1978–1987 Chadian-Libyan conflict
    • 1983–1984 Operation Manta
    • 13 February 1986–2014 Opération Épervier
    • 1986 Tibesti War
    • 16 December 1986 – 11 September 1987 Toyota War
• 11 April 2002 – ongoing Insurgency in the Maghreb

Congo (Republic of)

• 1665–1709 Kongo Civil War
• 1993–1994 Republic of the Congo Civil War (1993–94)
• 1997–1999 Republic of the Congo Civil War (1997–1999)
• 2016–2017 The Pool War

Congo (Democratic Republic of)

• 1892–1894 Congo Arab war
• 1895–1908 Batetela rebellion
• 28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918 World War I
• 1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945 World War II
• July 5, 1960 – November 25, 1965 Congo Crisis
  • 1964 Simba Rebellion
• 1960–ongoing Katanga insurgency
• March 8, 1977 – May 26, 1977 Shaba I
• May 11, 1978 – June 1978 Shaba II
• 1987–ongoing Lord's Resistance Army insurgency
• 1996–ongoing ADF insurgency
• October 24, 1996 – May 16, 1997 First Congo War
• August 2, 1998 – July 18, 2003 Second Congo War
  • 1999–ongoing Ituri Conflict
  • 2004–ongoing Kivu Conflict
  • 2012–2013 M23 rebellion
  • December 2013 – c. 2018 Batwa-Luba clashes
• 8 August 2016 – c. 2019 Kamwina Nsapu rebellion

São Tomé and Príncipe

• February 3, 1953 Batepá Massacre

Horn of Africa

Djibouti

• November 1991 – December 1994 Djiboutian Civil War
• June 10, 2008 – June 13, 2008 Djiboutian–Eritrean border conflict

Eritrea

Italian Eritrea

• 1895–1896 First Italo-Ethiopia War
  • 13 January 1895 Battle of Coatit
• 3 October 1935 – May 1936 Second Italo-Ethiopian War
  • 3 October 1935 – December 1935 De Bono's invasion of Abyssinia

Italian East Africa

• 10 June 1940 – 27 November 1941 World War II
  • 10 June 1940 – 2 May 1945 Mediterranean and Middle East theatre
    • 10 June 1940 – 27 November 1941 East African Campaign
      • 5 February 1941 – 1 April 1941 Battle of Keren

Federation of Ethiopia and Eritrea

• 1 September 1961 – 29 May 1991 Eritrean War of Independence
  • 24 July 1967 – 172 men killed in Hazemo
  • 1967 – 50 students suspected of being members of the Eritrean Liberation Front (ELF) had been hanged in the centre of Agordat.
  • 17 January 1970 – 60 village elders in Elabared had been rounded up for supporting the Eritrean Liberation Front and killed.
  • 30 November 1970 – 121 people in Basik Dera had been rounded up into the local mosque and killed.
  • 1 December 1970 – Ethiopian Army units surrounded and killed 625 people in Ona, and burned the village down
  • 28 December 1974 – 45 students in Asmara were strangled to death and their bodies dumped in alleyways and doorsteps
  • 2 February 1975 – During an engagement with the EPLF and the ELF, the Ethiopian Army attacked the church where 103 villagers in Woki Duba had taken refuge
  • 14 February 1975 – Ethiopian troops fired on and killed 300–3,000 civilians in Asmara and nearby villages
  • 9 March 1975 – Ethiopian troops killed 208 civilians in Agordat
  • August 1975 – 250 villagers in Om Hajer were machine-gunned in front of a river
  • April 1988 – Three killed by aerial attacks in Agordat
  • 5 December 1988 – 400 killed in She'eb
  • 3–4 April 1990 – Aerial attacks in Afabet killed 67 and wounded 125
  • 24 April 1990 – Aerial attacks and cluster bombs in Massawa killed 50 and wounded 110
  • 1977–1978 Battle of Massawa
  • 1977 Siege of Barentu
  • 17–20 March 1988 Battle of Afabet
  • 8–10 February 1990 Battle of Massawa

Ethiopian Empire

• February 1972 – 13 October 1974 First Eritrean Civil War

Provisional Military Government of Socialist Ethiopia

• February 1980 – 24 March 1981 Second Eritrean Civil War

Transitional Government of Ethiopia

• 15–17 December 1995 Hanish Islands conflict

State of Eritrea

• 6 May 1998 – 25 May 2000 Eritrean-Ethiopian War
• 10–13 June 2008 Djiboutian-Eritrean border conflict
• 1 January 2010 Eritrean-Ethiopian border skirmish

Ethiopia

Axumite Empire

• c. 300 CE Ezana of Axum is said to have launched several military campaigns and destroyed the Kingdom of Kush
• 525 Conquest of the Himyarite Kingdom by Axum
• 570–578 Aksumite-Persian wars
  • Battle of Hadhramaut
  • Siege of Sanaa (570)
• c. 900 King of Aksum Degna Djan led military expeditions as far south as Ennarea
• c. 960 Axumite Empire is said to have been destroyed by Gudit of the Kingdom of Simien

Makhzumi Dynasty

• c. 1270 Makhzumi Sultan assisted Yekuno Amlak rebellion against Zagwe dynasty
• c. 1285 the Conquest of Makhzumi by the Ifat Sultanate

Ethiopian Empire

• 1314–1344 Conquests of the Emperor Amda Seyon I
  • c. 1316 Early military actions
    • c. 1316 Emperor Amda Seyon I successfully campaigned against the Muslim kingdoms of Damot and Hadiya
  • c. 1320 Rebellion of Haqq ad-Din I
  • c. 1329 Northern campaigns
  • c. 1332 Later campaigns
  • c. 1320–1415 Abyssinian wars against the Sultanate of Ifat
• 1529–1543 Ethiopian-Adal War
  • March 1529 Battle of Shimbra Kure
  • 1531 Battle of Antukyah
  • 28 October 1531 Battle of Amba Sel
  • 24 April 1541 Battle of Sahart
  • 2 February 1542 Battle of Baçente
  • 4–16 April 1542 Battle of Jarte
  • August 1542 Battle of the Hill of the Jews
  • 28 August 1542 Battle of Wofla
  • 21 February 1543 Battle of Wayna Daga
• 1769–1855 Zemene Mesafint
• December 1867 – May 1868 British Expedition to Abyssinia
• 12 January 1872 – 10 March 1889 Conquests of Yohannes IV of Ethiopia
  • 1875–1881 War with Ottoman Egypt
  • 1885 War with Sudan
• 1886–1887 war with Emirate of Harar
  • October 1886 Battle of Hirna
  • 9 January 1887 Battle of Chelenqo
• 1881–1899 Mahdist War
  • 14 October 1888 Battle of Guté Dili
• 1895–1896 First Italo-Ethiopia War
  • 1 March 1896 Battle of Adwa
  • 7 December 1895 Battle of Amba Alagi
  • 13 January 1895 Battle of Coatit
• 3 October 1935 – May 1936 Second Italo-Ethiopia War
  • 3 October – December 1935 De Bono's invasion of Abyssinia
  • 15 December 1935 – 20 January 1936 Ethiopian Christmas Offensive
  • 12–20 January 1936 Battle of Genale Doria
  • 20–24 January 1936 First Battle of Tembien
  • 1–19 February 1936 Battle of Amba Aradam
  • 27–29 February 1936 Second Battle of Tembien
  • 29 February – 2 March 1936 Battle of Shire
  • 31 March 1936 Battle of Maychew
  • 14–25 April 1936 Battle of the Ogaden
  • 26 April – 5 May 1936 March of the Iron Will
• 1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945 World War II
  • 10 June 1940 – 2 May 1945 Mediterranean and Middle East theatre
    • 10 June 1940 – 27 November 1941 East African Campaign

Federation of Ethiopia and Eritrea

• 1 September 1961 – 29 May 1991 Eritrean War of Independence

Ethiopian Empire

• 12 September 1974 – 28 May 1991 Ethiopian Civil War

Provisional Military Government of Socialist Ethiopia

• 13 July 1977 – 15 March 1978 Ethio-Somali War
• June – August 1982 Ethiopian-Somali Border War

Transitional Government of Ethiopia

• 1992 – ongoing Oromo conflict
• 1994–2018 Insurgency in Ogaden

Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia

• 6 May 1998 – 25 May 2000 Eritrean-Ethiopian War
• 7 October 2002 – ongoing Operation Enduring Freedom – Horn of Africa
• 3 November 2020 – 3 November 2022 Tigray conflict

Somalia

Ajuuraan State

• 1580s Ajuran-Portuguese wars

Italian East Africa

• 10 June 1940 – 27 November 1941 World War II
  • 10 June 1940 – 2 May 1945 Mediterranean and Middle East theatre
    • 10 June 1940 – 27 November 1941 East African Campaign
      • 3–19 August 1940 Italian conquest of British Somaliland

Somali Democratic Republic

• 13 July 1977 – 15 March 1978 Ethio-Somali War
• 6 April 1981 – 18 May 1991 Somaliland War of Independence
• June–August 1982 Ethiopian-Somali Border War
• 26 January 1991 – ongoing Somali Civil War
  • 1978 – 1991 Somali Rebellion
  • 9 December 1992 – 4 May 1993 Unified Task Force
  • 22 August 1993 – 13 October 1993 Operation Gothic Serpent
    • 3–4 October 1993 Battle of Mogadishu

Transitional Federal Government

• 26 January 1991 – ongoing Somali Civil War
  • 4 June – 20 December 2006 Advance of the Islamic Courts Union
    • 7 May – 11 July 2006 Battle of Mogadishu
  • 20 December 2006 – 30 January 2009 War in Somalia
    • 20–26 December 2006 Battle of Baidoa
    • 23–25 December 2006 Battle of Bandiradley
    • 24–25 December 2006 Battle of Beledweyne
    • 27 December 2006 Battle of Jowhar
    • 28 December 2006 Fall of Mogadishu
    • 31 December 2006 – 1 January 2007 Battle of Jilib
    • 1 January 2007 Fall of Kismayo
    • 5–12 January 2007 Battle of Ras Kamboni
    • 21 March – 26 April 2007 Battle of Mogadishu
    • 31 May – 3 June 2007 Battle of Bargal
    • 8–16 November 2007 Battle of Mogadishu
    • 19–20 April 2008 Battle of Mogadishu
    • 1–26 July 2008 Battle of Beledweyne
    • 8 July 2008 – 26 January 2009 Siege of Baidoa
    • 20–22 August 2008 Battle of Kismayo
• Piracy in Somalia
  • 28 March 2006 Action
  • 3 June 2007 Action
  • 8 December 2008 – ongoing Operation Atalanta
  • 16 September 2008 Carré d'As IV incident
  • 9 April 2009 Raid off Somalia
  • 8–12 April 2009 Maersk Alabama hijacking
  • 17 August 2009 – ongoing Operation Ocean Shield
  • 23 March 2010 Action
  • 30 March 2010 Action
  • 5 April 2010 Action
  • 6 May 2010 MV Moscow University hijacking
  • 18–21 January 2011 MV Beluga Nomination incident
  • 16–19 June 2011 Operation Umeed-e-Nuh
  • 12 January 2012 Attack on Spanish oiler Patiño
• 31 January 2009 – ongoing War in Somalia
  • 22 February 2009 African Union base bombings in Mogadishu
  • 24–25 February 2009 Battle of South Mogadishu
  • 7 May – 1 October 2009 Battle of Mogadishu
  • 11 May – 1 October 2009 Battle for Central Somalia
  • 5 June 2009 Battle of Wabho
  • 18 June 2009 Beledweyne bombing
  • 1–7 October 2009 Battle of Kismayo
  • 10–14 January 2010 Battle of Beledweyne
  • May–July 2010 Ayn clashes
  • 1 May 2010 Mogadishu bombings
  • 20 July 2010 Kenya-Al-Shabaab border clash
  • 8 August – 17 October 2010 Galgala campaign
  • 23 August 2010 – 6 August 2011 Battle of Mogadishu
  • 27 April 2011 Battle of Gedo
  • 4 October 2011 Mogadishu bombing
  • 16 October 2011 – June 2012 Operation Linda Nchi
  • 28 September – 1 October 2012 Battle of Kismayo
  • 11 January 2013 Bulo Marer hostage rescue attempt
• June 2007 – May 2008 Ethiopian crackdown in Ogaden
• 7 October 2001 – ongoing War on Terrorism
  • 7 October 2002 – ongoing Operation Enduring Freedom - Horn of Africa
    • 18 March 2006 Action
    • 5–12 January 2007 Battle of Ras Kamboni
    • 3 June 2007 Action
    • 31 May – 3 June 2007 Battle of Bargal
    • 3 March 2008 Dobley airstrike
    • 1 May 2008 Dhusamareb airstrike
    • 8–12 April 2009 Maersk Alabama hijacking
    • 17 August 2009 – ongoing Operation Ocean Shield
    • 14 September 2009 Baraawe raid
    • 25 January 2012 Rescue of Jessica Buchanan and Poul Hagen Thisted

Federal Republic of Somalia

• 7 October 2001 – ongoing War on Terrorism
  • 7 October 2002 – ongoing Operation Enduring Freedom – Horn of Africa
    • 11 January 2013 Bulo Marer hostage rescue attempt

Somaliland

• c. 1700 BCE Invasion of Ancient Egypt by the Kingdom of Kush and the Land of Punt
• 1529–1543 Ethiopian-Adal War
• 1827 Battle of Berbera 1827
• 1900–1920 Somaliland Campaign
• 1922 1922 Burao Tax Revolt
• 10 June 1940 – 27 November 1941 East African Campaign (World War II)
• 3 August 1940 – 19 August 1940 Italian conquest of British Somaliland
• 2–7 July 1945 1945 Sheikh Bashir Rebellion
• 13 July 1977 – 15 March 1978 Ethio-Somali War
• 6 April 1981 – 18 May 1991 Somaliland War of Independence
• 1998 – ongoing Puntland-Somaliland dispute

Indian Ocean islands

Comoros

• March 25, 2008 – March 27, 2008 Invasion of Anjouan

Madagascar

• 1883–1885 First Madagascar expedition
• 1894–1895 Second Madagascar expedition
• 1942 Battle of Madagascar (World War II)
• 1947–1948 Madagascar revolt

Mauritius

• August 20, 1810 – August 27, 1810 Battle of Grand Port

North Africa

Algeria

• 264 BCE – 146 BCE Punic Wars
• 112 BCE – 106 BCE Jugurthine War
• 420s Vandals conquer the Roman province
• June 533 – March 534 Vandalic War
• 544 – Second Moorish uprising and the revolt of Guntharic
• 647 – 709 Muslim conquest of the Maghreb
• 1518 Fall of Tlemcen
• 1529 Capture of Peñón of Algiers
• September 14, 1769 – May 16, 1772 Danish–Algerian War
• 1830 – 1847 French conquest of Algeria
• 1835 – 1903 Pacification of Algeria
• June 10, 1940 – May 13, 1943 North African Campaign (World War II)
• May 8, 1945 Sétif and Guelma massacre
• November 1, 1954 – March 19, 1962 Algerian War
• October 1963 Sand War
• 1970 – ongoing Western Sahara conflict
• December 26, 1991 – February 2002 Algerian Civil War
• April 11, 2002 – ongoing Insurgency in the Maghreb

Egypt

• 1803–1807 Muhammad Ali's seizure of power
• 1881–1899 Mahdist War
• June 11, 1940 – February 4, 1943: North African Campaign, part of World War II
• October 29 – November 7, 1956 Suez Crisis
• June 5, 1967 – June 10, 1967 Six-Day War
• July 1, 1967 – August 7, 1970 War of Attrition
• October 6, 1973 – October 25, 1973 Yom Kippur War
• July 21, 1977 – July 24, 1977 Libyan–Egyptian War
• January 25, 2011 – ongoing 2011 Egyptian Revolution and Aftermath
  • January 25, 2011 – February 11, 2011 Egyptian Revolution
  • Egyptian crisis (2011–14)
  • February 23, 2011 – ongoing Sinai insurgency
  • November 22, 2012 – July 3, 2013 Egyptian protests
  • June 28, 2013 – July 3, 2013 June 2013 Egyptian protests
  • July 3, 2013 – ongoing Political violence in Egypt
  • 2013 – ongoing Insurgency in Egypt (2013–present)

Libya

• c. 1279 BC – 1213 BC Ramesses II's Campaigns in Libya
• 264 BC – 146 BC Punic Wars
• 112 BC – 106 BC Jugurthine War
• 420s Vandals conquer the Roman province
• June 533 – March 534 Vandalic War
• 544 Second Moorish uprising and the revolt of Guntharic
• 647 – 709 Muslim conquest of the Maghreb
• Ottoman–Habsburg wars
  • 1551 Siege of Tripoli
• 1793 – 1795 Tripolitanian civil war
• 1797 Action of 16 May 1797
• 1801 – 05 First Barbary War
• 1825 Sardinian-Tripolitanian war of 1825
• 1911 – 43 Libyan resistance movement
• 1911 – 12 Italo-Turkish War
• June 11, 1940 – February 4, 1943 Western Desert Campaign, part of World War II
• 1977 Libyan-Egyptian War
• 1978 – 87 Chadian-Libyan conflict
• August, 1980 Tobruk incident
• May 8, 1984 Bab al-Azizia siege
• 2011 Libyan Civil War
• 2011 – 2014 Post-civil war violence in Libya
  • 2014 – 2020 Second Libyan Civil War

Morocco

• 264 BCE – 146 BCE Punic Wars
• 112 BCE – 106 BCE Jugurthine War
• 420s Vandals conquer the Roman province
• June 533 – March 534 Vandalic War
• 544 Second Moorish uprising and the revolt of Guntharic
• 647–709 Muslim conquest of the Maghreb
• 739–743 Berber Revolt
• 1130–1147 Almoravid-Almohad War
• 1215–1269 Almohad-Marinid War
• 1125–1269 Almohad-Marinid War
• 1299–1370 Morocco-Tlemcen conflict
• 1415–1578 Moroccan-Portuguese conflict
• 1465 Moroccan Revolt
• 1527–1554 Wattassid-Saadian War
• September 1497 Conquest of Melilla
• 1554–1830 Moroccan-Turkish border conflict
• 1577 A Moroccan expedition occupied Taghaza
• 1582 A first expedition to Timbuktu was defeated
• 1591 A Moroccan expeditionary force defeated the Songhay army at Tondibi and conquered Gao, Timbuktu and Djenné
• 1603–1627 War of Succession
• 1613–1666 Civil War
• 1844 First Franco-Moroccan War
• 1859 Spanish-Moroccan War
• 1893 Rif War
• 1909 Rif War
• 1911–1912 Second Franco-Moroccan War
• 1920–1926 Rif War
• 1914–1921 Zaian War
• 1942 North African Campaign
• 1957–1958 Ifni War
• 1963 Sand War
• 1970–ongoing Western Sahara conflict
• 1975–1991 Western Sahara War
• April 11, 2002 – ongoing Insurgency in the Maghreb

Sudan

Nubia

• c. 3050 BCE Hor-Aha, the second pharaoh of Egypt, led a campaign against the Nubians

Kingdom of Kerma

• c. 1506 BCE – 1493 BCE During the reign of Thutmose I, the Kingdom of Kerma rebelled against Egyptian rule and Thutmose I traveled up the Nile and fought in the battle, killing the Nubian king.

Egyptian Empire

• c. 1282 BCE Seti's military campaigns
• c. 1279 BCE – 1213 BCE Remesses II's campaigns in Nubia

Kingdom of Kush

• 23 BCE The Roman prefect of Egypt invaded the Kingdom of Kush after an initial attack by the queen of Meröe, razing Napata to the ground
• c. 300 CE Ezana of Axum launched several military campaigns, destroying the Kingdom of Kush

Kingdom of Makuria

• 1312 Mamluk Invasion

Sultanate of Darfur

• 1722–1786 Civil War

Egyptian Eyalet

• February 1820 – October 1822 Invasion of Libya and Sudan

Khedivate of Egypt

• 1899–1901 Rabih War
  • 1874 Rabih az-Zubayr conquered the Sultanate of Darfur
• 1881–1899 The Mahdist War
  • 3–5 November 1883 Battle of El Obeid
  • 4–29 February 1884 First and Second Battles of El Teb
  • 13 March 1884 Battle of Tamai
  • 13 March 1884 – 26 January 1885 Siege of Khartoum
  • 17 January 1885 Battle of Abu Klea
  • 10 February 1885 Battle of Kirbekan
  • 22 March 1885 Battle of Tofrek
  • 30 December 1885 Battle of Ginnis
  • 20 December 1888 Battle of Suakin
  • 9–10 March 1889 Battle of Gallabat
  • 17 July 1894 Battle of Kassala
  • 7 June 1896 Battle of Ferkeh
  • 8 April 1898 Battle of Atbara
  • 2 September 1898 Battle of Omdurman
  • 25 November 1899 Battle of Umm Diwaykarat

Anglo-Egyptian Sudan

• 28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918 World War I
  • 29 October 1914 – 30 October 1918 Middle Eastern theatre
    • 1914–1918 North African theatre
      • 19 November 1915 – February 1917 Senussi Campaign

• 1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945 World War II
  • 10 June 1940 – 2 May 1945 Mediterranean and Middle East theatre
    • 10 June 1940 – 27 November 27 1941 East African Campaign
      • 3–19 August 1940 Italian conquest of British Somaliland
      • 5 February 1941 – 1 April 1941 Battle of Keren
      • 4–19 May 1941 Battle of Amba Alagi
      • 13–27 November 1941 Battle of Gondar

Republic of the Sudan

• 18 August 1955 – 27 March 1972 First Sudanese Civil War
  • 1969–1972 Anyanya rebellion

Democratic Republic of the Sudan

• 1 April 1983 – January 2005 Second Sudanese Civil War

Republic of the Sudan

• 1987 – ongoing Lord's Resistance Army insurgency
• 2003 – ongoing War in Darfur
  • 10–12 May 2008 Attack on Omdurman and Khartoum
• 18 December 2005 – 15 January 2010 Chad-Sudan conflict
• 27–29 November 2006 Battle of Malakal
• January 2009 – ongoing Sudanese nomadic conflicts
  • 23 April 2010 South Darfur clash
• 7 January 2011 – ongoing South Sudan internal conflict
• 19 May 2011 – ongoing Sudan-SRF conflict
• 26 March – 26 September 2012 Sudan-South Sudan Border War
  • 26–28 March 2012 First Battle of Heglig
  • 17–18 April 2012 Abyei border clash
  • 15 December 2013 – 22 February 2020 South Sudanese Civil War

Tunisia

Carthaginian Empire

• 264–146 BCE Punic Wars
  • 264–241 BCE First Punic War
    • 255 BCE Siege of Aspis
    • 255 BCE Siege of Adys
    • 255 BCE Battle of Tunis
  • 240–238 BCE Mercenary War
    • Spring 240 BCE Battle of Utica
    • Autumn 240 BCE Battle of the Bagradas River
    • Autumn 240 BCE Hamilcar's victory with Navaras
    • 238 BCE Battle of "The Saw"
    • 238 BCE Siege of Tunis
  • 218–201 BCE Second Punic War
    • 203 BCE Battle of Utica
    • 203 BCE Battle of the Great Plains
    • 19 October 202 BCE Battle of Zama
  • 149–146 BCE Third Punic War
    • 147 BCE Battle of the Port of Carthage
    • 147 BCE Battle of Nepheris
    • c. 149 BCE – Spring 146 BCE Battle of Carthage

Kingdom of Numidia

• 112–106 BCE Jugurthine War
  • 111–104 BCE Battle of Thala
  • 110 BCE Battle of Suthul
  • 108 BCE Battle of the Muthul

Roman Province of Africa

• 238 CE Battle of Carthage
• 439 CE Genseric broke the treaty between the Vandals and the Romans when he invaded the province of Africa Proconsularis and laid siege to Carthage.
• Germanic Wars
  • 468 CE Battle of Cap Bon

Vandal Kingdom

• June 533 – Mach 534 Vandalic War
  • 13 September 533 Battle of Ad Decimum
  • 15 December 533 Battle of Tricamarum

Byzantine Praetorian Prefecture of Africa

• The Moorish Wars
  • 534 First Moorish uprising
  • 536 Military mutiny
  • 544 Second Moorish uprising and the revolt of Guntharic
• 577 Conflict with Moorish kingdom of Garmul

Byzantine Exarchate of Africa

• 647–709 Muslim conquest of the Maghreb
  • 698 Battle of Carthage

Aghlabids

• 824–836 Military mutiny
• 879–880 Invasion of al-Abbas ibn Ahmad ibn Tulun

Fatimid Caliphate

• 909 Fatimid conquest of Ifriqiya from the Aghlabids
• 943–947 Rebellion of Abu Yazid

Almohad Caliphate

• 1160 Ifriqiya conquered and annexed by the Almohads
• 1171–1172 Conquest of North Africa and Nubia by the Ayyubid Dynasty

Ayyubid Dynasty

• 1171–1172 Conquest of North Africa and Nubias by the Ayyubid Dynasty

Hafsid Dynasty

• 1269 Eighth Crusade

Ottoman Tunisia

• 1526–1791 Ottoman-Habsburg wars
  • 16 August 1534 Conquest of Tunis
  • June 1535 Conquest of Tunis
  • 12 July – 13 September 1574 Conquest of Tunis

French Protectorate of Tunisia

• 1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945 World War II
  • 10 June 1940 – 2 May 1945 Mediterranean and Middle East theatre
    • 10 June 1940 – 13 May 1943 North African Campaign
      • 17 November 1942 – 13 May 1943 Tunisia Campaign
        • 10 November – 25 December 1942 Run for Tunis
        • February – May 1943 Battle of Sedjenane
        • 14–17 February 1943 Battle of Sidi Bou Zid
        • 19–25 February 1943 Battle of the Kasserine Pass
        • 6 March 1943 Battle of Medenine
        • 16–27 March 1943 Operation Pugilist
        • 23 March – 3 April 1943 Battle of El Guettar
        • 5–27 April 1943 Operation Flax
        • 6–7 April 1943 Battle of Wadi Akarit
        • 27 April – 1 May 1943 Battle of Hill 609
        • 6–12 May 1943 Operation Vulcan
        • 8–13 May 1943 Operation Retribution
• 1952–1956 Tunisian Independence

Kingdom of Tunisia

• 1952–1956 Tunisian Independence

Republic of Tunisia

• 19–23 July 1961 Bizerte Crisis
• 18 December 2010 – 14 January 2011 Tunisian Revolution
• 26 June 2015 – 2022 ISIL insurgency in Tunisia

Southern Africa

Angola

• February 4, 1961 – April 25, 1974 Angolan War of Independence
• November 11, 1975 – April 4, 2002 Angolan Civil War

Lesotho

• 1880–1881 Gun War
• 22 September 1998 – May 1999 South African intervention in Lesotho

Malawi

• August 3, 1914 – November 1918 World War I

Mozambique

• July 28, 1914 – November 11, 1918 World War I
• September 25, 1964 – September 8, 1974 Mozambican War of Independence
• May 30, 1977 – October 4, 1992 Mozambican Civil War
• 2013–2014 Internal conflict in Mozambique
• October 5, 2017 – ongoing Insurgency in Cabo Delgado

Namibia

• 1904–1907 Herero Genocide
• July 28, 1914 – November 11, 1918 World War I
  • September 15, 1914 – February 4, 1915 Maritz Rebellion
• August 26, 1966 – March 21, 1990 Namibian War of Independence
• 1994–1999 Caprivi conflict

South Africa

• May 18, 1803 – November 20, 1815 Napoleonic Wars
• 1817–1819 Ndwandwe–Zulu War
• 1830s–1840s Great Trek
• February 17, 1838 Weenen Massacre
• January 11, 1879 – July 4, 1879 Anglo-Zulu War
• 1779–1879 Xhosa Wars
• December 20, 1880 – March 23, 1881 First Boer War
• October 11, 1899 – May 31, 1902 Second Boer War
• July 28, 1914 – November 11, 1918 World War I
  • September 15, 1914 – February 4, 1915 Maritz Rebellion
• September 4, 1939 – May 7, 1945 World War II
• March 21, 1960 Sharpeville Massacre
• August 26, 1966 – March 21, 1990 South African Border War
• June 16, 1976 Soweto Uprising

Eswatini

• October 11, 1899 – May 31, 1902 Second Boer War

Zambia

• July 28, 1914 – November 11, 1918 World War I
• September 1, 1939 – September 2, 1945 World War II

Zimbabwe

• October 1893 – January 1894 First Matabele War
• March 1896 – October 1897 Matabele and Mashona 'Revolts' Second Matabele War
• July 4, 1964 – December 12, 1979 Second Chimurenga/Rhodesian Bush War
• 1982 – 1987 Gukurahundi genocide

West Africa

Benin

• 1724–1727 Abomey (Dahomey) conquests
• 1726–1730 First Oyo-Dahomey War
• 1738–1748 Oyo Conquest of Dahomey
• 1764 Second Ashanti-Akim War
• 1768 Yoruba-Ashanti War
• 1851 First Dahomean-Abeokuta War
• 1864 Second Dahomean-Abeokuta War
• 1889–1894 France conquers Dahomey

Burkina Faso

• 1985 Agacher Strip War
• 2015 – present Jihadist insurgency in Burkina Faso

Côte d'Ivoire

• 1883–1898 Mandingo Wars
• September 19, 2002 – March 4, 2007 First Ivorian Civil War
• 28 November 2010 – 11 April 2011 Second Ivorian Civil War

Gambia

• 2016–2017 2016–2017 Gambian constitutional crisis
  • 2017 – ECOWAS intervention in the Gambia (2017)

Ghana

• 1620–1654 Dutch–Portuguese War
• 1664–1665 Anglo-Dutch Wars
• 1823–1831 Anglo-Ashanti wars
• 1900 War of the Golden Stool
• 1948 Accra Riots

Guinea

• 2013 Guinea clashes

Guinea-Bissau

• 1962–1974 Guinea-Bissau War of Independence
• 1997–1999 Guinea-Bissau Civil War

Liberia

• 1989–1996 First Liberian Civil War
• 1999–2003 Second Liberian Civil War

Mali

• 647–709 Muslim conquest of the Maghreb
• 1075 Almoravid conquest of the Ghana Empire
• c. 1230–1250 Early imperial expansion of the Mali Empire
• 1400 The Sandaki usurpation and second Mossi raid
• 1433 The Tuareg invasion
• c. 1460s Songhai conquered Mema
• 1810–1818 Mopti Jihad
• 1848–1864 Initial conquests of El Hadj Umar Tall Jihad
• 1883–1886 Mandingo Wars
• 1962–1964 First Tuareg rebellion
• 1985 Agacher Strip War
• 1990–1995 Azawad insurgency and Malian civil war
• April 11, 2002 – ongoing Insurgency in the Maghreb
• 2007–2009 Second Tuareg rebellion
• 2012 – Third Tuareg Rebellion
• 2012 – ongoing Northern Mali conflict
• 2020 Coup d'état

Mauritania

• 1970–ongoing Western Sahara conflict
• April 11, 2002 – ongoing Insurgency in the Maghreb

Niger

• 1516–1517 Songhai Civil War
• 1916–1917 Kaocen Revolt
• 1990–1995 First Azawad insurgency
• April 11, 2002 – ongoing Insurgency in the Maghreb
• 2007–2009 Second Azawad insurgency
• 2012 Tuareg Rebellion
• 2023 Nigerien coup d'état

Nigeria

• 1578–1608 Oyo-Benin War
• 1804–1808 Fulani War
• 1835–1836 Fula jihads
• 1873 – Rafin Jaki Jihad
• 1897 Benin Expedition
• 1953–ongoing Religious violence in Nigeria
• 1967–1970 Nigerian Civil War
  • 1998–ongoing Communal conflicts in Nigeria (1998-present)
• 1999–ongoing Nigerian Sharia conflict

Sierra Leone

• February 7, 1813 Action
• 1982 Ndogboyosoi War
• March 23, 1991 – January 18, 2002 Sierra Leone Civil War

Western Sahara

• October 23, 1957 – June 30, 1958 Ifni War
• 1970–ongoing Western Sahara conflict
• October 30, 1975 – September 6, 1991 Western Sahara War

Chronological list of wars

19th century

• 1801–1807 Temne War
• 1801–1805 First Barbary War
• 1803–1805 Napoleonic Wars
  • 1803–1806 War of the Third Coalition
    • 1806 Battle of Blaauwberg
  • 1807–1809 Anglo-Turkish War
    • 1807 Alexandria expedition
• 1804–1808 Fulani War
• 1805–1811 Muhammad Ali's seizure of power
• 1806–1807 Ashanti–Fante War
• 1807–1818 Mtetwa Empire Expansion
• 1810–1818 Amadu's Jihad
• 1811–1812 Fourth Xhosa War
• 1811 Ga–Fante War
• c.1812 Battle of Shela
• 1814–1816 Ashanti–Akim–Akwapim War
• 1815 Slachter's Nek Rebellion
• 1815 Second Barbary War
• 1817–1819 Ndwandwe–Zulu War
• 1818–1819 Fifth Xhosa War
• 1818–1828 Zulu wars of conquest
• 1st March 1896 Battle of Adwa

20th century

• 1900 War of the Golden Stool
• 1900–1920 Somaliland Campaign
• 1901–1901 French conquest of the Dendi Kingdom^[1]
• 1902–1904 Kuanhama Rebellion^[2]
• 1901–1902 Anglo-Aro War
• 1901–1903 Mapondera Rebellion
• 1902–1904 Bailundo revolt of 1902
• 1903–1904 British conquest of the Sokoto Caliphate^[3]
• 1904–1908 Herero Wars
• 1904–1905 uprising in Madagascar
• 1905–1907 Maji Maji Rebellion
• 1906 Bambatha Rebellion
• 1906 Sokoto Uprising of 1906^[4]
• 1907–1910 Dembos War of 1907-1910^[4]
• 1908 Battle of Marrakech
• 1909 Second Melillan campaign
• 1909–1911 Ouaddai War
• 1910–1912 Portuguese conquest of the Kasanje Kingdom^[5]
• 1911–1912 French conquest of Morocco
• 1911–1912 Italo-Turkish War
• 1912 Sirte revolt^[6]
• 1914 Kolongongo War^[7]
• 1914–1917 Kongo revolt^[8][9]
• 1914–1921 Zaian War
• 1914–1918 African theatre of World War I
  • 1914–1918 East African campaign
  • 1914–1916 Kamerun campaign
  • 1914 Togoland Campaign
  • 1914–1915 South West Africa campaign
• 1914–1915 Maritz rebellion
• 1915–1916 Volta-Bani War
• 1915 Chilembwe uprising
• 1915 The Bussa rebellion
• 1915–1917 Senussi Campaign
• 1916–1917 Kaocen revolt
• 1916 Battle of Segale
• 1918 The Adubi War
• 1920 Misurata-Warfalla War^[10]
• 1920–1922 Jabal al-Gharbi civil war
• 1920–1926 Rif War
• 1921–1922 Rand Rebellion
• 1922 Bondelswarts Rebellion
• 1923–1932 Pacification of Libya
• 1928–1931 Kongo-Wara rebellion
• 1929–1930 Women's War
• 1930 Gugsa Wale's rebellion
• 1935–1937 Second Italo-Ethiopian War
• 1939–1945 World War II
  • 1940–1943 North African campaign
  • 1940–1943 East African campaign
  • 1940 Battle of Dakar
  • 1940 Battle of Gabon
  • 1942 Battle of Madagascar
• 1943 Woyane rebellion
• 1952–1960 Mau Mau Uprising
• 1954–1962 Algerian War
• 1955–1964 Bamileke War
• 1955–1972 First Sudanese Civil War
• 1957–1958 Ifni War
• 1960–1965 Congo Crisis
  • 1966–1967 Stanleyville mutinies
• 1960–present Katanga insurgency
• 1961 Bizerte crisis
• 1961–1991 Eritrean War of Independence
• 1961–1974 Portuguese Colonial War
  • 1961–1974 Angolan War of Independence
  • 1963–1974 Guinea-Bissau War of Independence
  • 1964–1974 Mozambican War of Independence
• 1962–1964 Tuareg rebellion
• 1963 Sand War
• 1963–1967 Shifta War
• 1963–1970 Bale revolt
• 1964 Ethiopian–Somali Border War
• 1964–1965 Simba rebellion
• 1964–1979 Rhodesian Bush War
• 1964 Zanzibar Revolution
• 1965–1979 First Chadian Civil War
• 1966–1989 South African Border War
• 1967–1970 Nigerian Civil War
• 1970–present Western Sahara conflict
  • 1975–1991 Western Sahara War
• 1972–1974 First Eritrean Civil War
• 1973–2018 Oromo conflict
• 1974–1991 Ethiopian Civil War
• 1975–2002 Angolan Civil War
• 1975–present Cabinda War
• 1977–1992 Mozambican Civil War
• 1977 Libyan–Egyptian War
• 1977–1978 Ogaden War
• 1977 Shaba I
• 1978 Shaba II
• 1978–1979 Uganda–Tanzania War
• 1978–1987 Chadian–Libyan conflict
• 1980–1981 Second Eritrean Civil War
• 1980–1986 Ugandan Bush War
• 1981 Entumbane uprising
• 1981 Gambian coup d'état attempt
• 1982–present Casamance conflict
• 1982 Ndogboyosoi War
• 1982 Ethiopian–Somali Border War
• 1983–2005 Second Sudanese Civil War
• 1985 Agacher Strip War
• 1986 United States bombing of Libya
• 1987–present Lord's Resistance Army insurgency
• 1989–1991 Mauritania–Senegal Border War
• 1989–1997 First Liberian Civil War
• 1990–1994 Rwandan Civil War
• 1990–1995 Tuareg rebellion
• 1991–1994 Djiboutian Civil War
• 1991–2002 Sierra Leone Civil War
• 1991–2002 Algerian Civil War
• 1991–present Somali Civil War
• 1993–2005 Burundian Civil War
• 1993–1994 Republic of the Congo Civil War
• 1994 Bophuthatswana crisis
• 1994–1999 Caprivi conflict
• 1994–2018 Insurgency in Ogaden
• 1995–2018 Second Afar insurgency
• 1995 Hanish Islands conflict
• 1996–present Allied Democratic Forces insurgency
• 1996–1997 First Congo War
• 1997–1999 Republic of the Congo Civil War
• 1998–2000 Eritrean–Ethiopian War
• 1998–2003 Second Congo War
  • 2000 Six-Day War
• 1998–1999 Guinea-Bissau Civil War
• 1999–2003 Second Liberian Civil War
• 1999–present Ituri conflict

21st century

• 2001–2021 War on Terrorism
  • 1981–present Islamic Terrorism in Egypt
  • 2002–present Islamic insurgency in the Maghreb
  • 2002–present Operation Enduring Freedom - Horn of Africa
  • 2006 Rise of the Islamic Courts Union
  • 2006–2009 Ethiopian War in Somalia
  • 2007–present Operation Enduring Freedom - Trans Sahara
  • 2009–present Islamist civil war in Somalia
  • 2009 Nigerian sectarian violence
  • 2009–present Boko Haram insurgency
  • 2015–2022 ISIL insurgency in Tunisia
  • 2015–present Jihadist insurgency in Burkina Faso
  • 2016–present Jihadist insurgency in Niger
  • 2017–present Islamist insurgency in Mozambique
• 2002–2003 Conflict in the Pool Department
• 2002–2004 First Ivorian Civil War
• 2003–2020 War in Darfur
• 2004 French–Ivorian clashes
• 2004–present Conflict in the Niger Delta
  • 2016–present Niger Delta conflict
• 2004–2007 Central African Republic Bush War
• 2004–present Kivu conflict
• 2005–2010 Chadian Civil War
• 2005–2008 Mount Elgon insurgency
• 2006–2013 Bakassi conflict
• 2007–2009 Second Tuareg Rebellion
• 2007–2008 Kenyan crisis
• 2008 Invasion of Anjouan
• 2008 Kufra conflict
• 2008 Djiboutian–Eritrean border conflict
• 2009–present Sudanese nomadic conflicts
  • 2011–present Ethnic violence in South Sudan
    • 2013–2020 South Sudanese Civil War
• 2009 Sudan airstrikes
• 2009 Dongo conflict
• 2010–2011 Second Ivorian Civil War
• 2011–2023 Sinai Insurgency
• 2011 First Libyan Civil War
• 2011–present Sudanese conflict in South Kordofan and Blue Nile
• 2011–2014 Factional violence in Libya
• 2012–present Mali War
• 2012 Heglig Crisis
• 2012–2013 M23 rebellion
• 2012 Baragoi clashes
• 2012–present Central African Republic Civil War
• 2013–2018 Batwa–Luba clashes
• 2013–2019 RENAMO insurgency
• 2014 Aswan tribal clashes
• 2014–2020 Second Libyan Civil War
• 2016–2017 Pool War
• 2016 Kasese clashes
• 2016–2019 Kamwina Nsapu rebellion
• 2017–present Anglophone Crisis
• 2020–2022 Tigray War
• 2023–present 2023 Sudan conflict
• 2023–present 2023 Las Anod conflict

See also

• List of active separatist movements in Africa
• Military history of Africa

General:

• List of conflicts in North America
• List of conflicts in Central America
• List of conflicts in South America
• List of conflicts in Europe
• List of conflicts in Asia
• List of conflicts in the Near East
• List of modern conflicts in the Middle East
• List of wars

References

Further reading

• Ahram, Ariel I. War and Conflict in the Middle East and North Africa (John Wiley & Sons, 2020).
• Christman, Audrey Mona. Civil wars in Africa: Roots and resolution (McGill-Queen's Press-MQUP, 1999).

• Kalu, Kelechi A. ed. Civil Wars in Africa (2022) excerpt

• Sidorova, Galina, and Eliza Lyubenova. "Contemporary Wars in Africa or 21st Century Competition for Power." Journal of Asian and African Studies (2020): 0021909620965609.
• Williams, Paul D. War and conflict in Africa (John Wiley & Sons, 2016).