Editing 2002 (section)

== Conflicts ==
{{Further|Category:Conflicts in 2002}}
There were 31 recognized armed conflicts in 2002, a net decrease from the previous year: seven conflicts ended in 2001, while conflicts in Angola, Congo, and Ivory Coast began or resumed in 2002.<ref name=":2" /> The deadliest conflicts in 2002 were those in Burundi, Colombia, Kashmir, Nepal, and Sudan.<ref name=":2" /> Among developed nations in 2002, national defense shifted toward [[counterterrorism]] after the [[September 11 attacks]] and the [[United States invasion of Afghanistan|invasion of Afghanistan]] the previous year. Conflicts in Afghanistan, Chechnya, Israel, and the Philippines were directly related to countering [[Islamic terrorism]].<ref name=":3">{{Cite book |last1=Wiharta |first1=Sharon |title=SIPRI Yearbook 2003: Armaments, Disarmament and International Security |last2=Anthony |first2=Ian |publisher=[[Stockholm International Peace Research Institute]] |year=2003 |isbn=978-0-19-926570-1 |pages=87–108 |language=en |chapter=Major armed conflicts |chapter-url=https://www.sipri.org/yearbook/2003/02 |access-date=March 28, 2023 |archive-date=March 28, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230328204444/https://www.sipri.org/yearbook/2003/02 |url-status=live }}</ref>{{Rp|page=87}}

=== Internal conflicts ===
The [[Colombian conflict]] escalated after far-left insurgents occupied [[demilitarized zone]]s and kidnapped [[Íngrid Betancourt]], effectively ending peace talks. The insurgents began bombing cities, and over 200,000 Colombians were displaced by the conflict in 2002.<ref name=":3" />{{Rp|pages=91–92}}

The [[Nepalese Civil War]] escalated in 2002, with casualties approximately equaling the combined totals from 1996 to 2001; half of this increase was civilian casualties, as civilians were targeted by both the Nepali government and the communist insurgents.<ref name=":3" />{{Rp|pages=88–89}} Chechen insurgents in Russia escalated their attacks during the [[Second Chechen War]], [[2002 Khankala Mi-26 crash|destroying]] a Russian [[Mil Mi-26]] in August and causing a [[Moscow theater hostage crisis|hostage crisis]] in Moscow.<ref name=":3" />{{Rp|pages=93–94}} The [[Second Liberian Civil War]] also escalated, causing widespread displacement of civilians.<ref name=":4">{{Cite book |url=https://www.unmultimedia.org/searchers/yearbook/page_un2.jsp?volume=2002 |title=Yearbook of the United Nations, 2002 |publisher=United Nations |editor-last=Gordon |editor-first=Kathryn |volume=56 |access-date=March 28, 2023 |archive-date=March 28, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230328235126/https://www.unmultimedia.org/searchers/yearbook/page_un2.jsp?volume=2002 |url-status=live }}</ref>{{Rp|page=90}}

Conflicts that saw some form of resolution in 2002 include the [[Eelam War III]] in Sri Lanka, which was halted with a ceasefire agreement in February,<ref name=":3" />{{Rp|page=98}} and the [[Angolan Civil War]], which was resolved in April with a ceasefire between the Angolan government and [[UNITA]].<ref name=":4" />{{Rp|page=89}} Internationally brokered peace talks advanced in the [[Second Sudanese Civil War]],<ref name=":3" />{{Rp|page=102}} some factions of the [[Somali Civil War]],<ref name=":3" />{{Rp|page=106}} and the [[Second Congo War]], with the latter producing an agreement on December 17 to create [[Transitional Government of the Democratic Republic of the Congo|a Congolese transitional government]].<ref name=":3" />{{Rp|pages=100–101}} Afghanistan underwent its first year without direct military conflict in over two decades, though sporadic attacks were carried out by the [[Taliban insurgency]] and [[al-Qaeda]].<ref name=":4" />{{Rp|page=256}} An agreement was reached with the government of Burundi and the [[CNDD-FDD]] on December 3, but the other major faction in Burundi, the [[Palipehutu-FNL]], did not participate in peace talks.<ref name=":2" />

The largest attack on civilians in 2002 was [[2002 Bali bombings|a series of bombings]] in [[Bali]] that killed or injured hundreds on October 12, with Australian tourists making up a large portion of the victims.<ref name=":52" />{{Rp|page=228}} Major attacks also [[2002 Mombasa attacks|took place in Kenya]] on November 28, bombing Israeli citizens at a hotel and making a failed attempt to shoot down an airplane boarded by Israelis.<ref name=":16" />{{Rp|page=385}} The Washington D.C. area was the subject of [[D.C. sniper attacks|several sniper attacks]] the same month, killing ten people. Europe underwent a large number of [[mass shootings]] throughout the year, including [[Nanterre massacre|an attack]] on a town council meeting in France on March 27 that killed eight councilors and [[Erfurt school massacre|a school shooting]] in Germany on April 26—one of the deadliest in the world with 18 fatalities.<ref name=":52" />{{Rp|page=229}}

=== International conflicts ===
[[File:Operation Defensive Shield 82.jpeg|thumb|The [[Israel Defense Forces]] occupying the [[West Bank]] during [[Operation Defensive Shield]]]]
The only direct conflict between nations in 2002 was the [[2001–2002 India–Pakistan standoff|India–Pakistan standoff]] in Kashmir,<ref name=":2">{{Cite journal |last1=Eriksson |first1=Mikael |last2=Wallensteen |first2=Peter |last3=Sollenberg |first3=Margareta |date=2003 |title=Armed Conflict, 1989-2002 |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/3648363 |journal=Journal of Peace Research |volume=40 |issue=5 |pages=593–607 |doi=10.1177/00223433030405006 |jstor=3648363 |s2cid=110338545 |issn=0022-3433 |access-date=March 28, 2023 |archive-date=February 10, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230210210427/https://www.jstor.org/stable/3648363 |url-status=live |url-access=subscription }}</ref> beginning in late 2001. This conflict was primarily one of [[brinkmanship]], with the threat of [[nuclear warfare]].<ref name=":3" />{{Rp|page=88}} Riots in Gujarat and suicide bombings in [[Jammu]] further escalated tensions.<ref name=":15">{{Cite book |url=https://archive.org/details/timeannual20030000unse/ |title=Time Annual 2003 |publisher=Time Books |year=2003 |isbn=1-929049-90-0 |issn=1097-5721}}</ref>{{Rp|page=87}}

The [[Second Intifada]] continued in 2002 between the [[Israel Defense Forces]] and Palestinian paramilitary groups with an escalation in violence. Palestinian suicide bombings became coordinated to maximize the number of civilian casualties, while the Israeli military killed approximately twice as many Palestinians in retaliation.<ref name=":15" />{{Rp|page=73}} In response to the suicide bombings, Israel carried out [[Operation Defensive Shield]] in March.<ref name=":4" />{{Rp|page=413}} Under this operation, Israel occupied much of [[West Bank]],<ref name=":4" />{{Rp|page=413}} and it and briefly held Palestinian president [[Yasser Arafat]] under house arrest.<ref name=":3" />{{Rp|page=95}} The [[Battle of Jenin (2002)|Battle of Jenin]] was particularly destructive, with the [[United Nations]] finding both parties to be irresponsible regarding [[collateral damage]].<ref name=":3" />{{Rp|page=96}}