Waziristan

Waziristan borders Afghanistan in northwest Pakistan. Since the 19th century, it has fought outside rule.

Local Pashtun tribes resisted British colonization. In the 1920s, tribal uprisings broke out in Waziristan, led by figures such as the Faqir of Ipi, who fought against British rule and the imposition of taxes and other outside control.

Waziristan remained a site of conflict and resistance post-colonially. It was a major base for Afghan mujahideen fighting the Soviet-backed government in the 1980s and 1990s. Taliban and Al-Qaida militants hid there after the 2001 Taliban fall. Several Pakistani military operations have targeted them.

Russia and then America's invasion of Afghanistan, decades of militancy, and Pakistan's military operations in the region such as the 2014 Operation Zarb-e-Azb (Arabic for "sharp and cutting strike") have displaced over a million local people and damaged the area.

The Pashtun Resistance Movement (PTM) originated in Waziristan.