One of the most destructive and violent conflicts that the world has witnessed is the ever lasting struggle between Chechnya and Russia. The conflict between the Chechens and the Russians is a conflict that has been going on for several centuries and every now and then it erupts and then calms down. After the Bolshevik Revolution in the early 20th century, Stalin's collectivization campaign in 1929 led to new rebellion and repression. During 1936-38 the purges led to the imprisonment and execution of thousands of Chechens. The first time that the conflict was of notable magnitude was during WWII when Soviet Premiere Joseph Stalin accused the Chechens of supporting the Nazis and began deporting them by the hundreds of thousands. On 23-24 February 1944, the Chechens were systematically rounded up by Russian troops and shipped off to the east in freight trains. When Khrushchev came after Stalin he removed all legal restrictions on the Chechens but still rejected their claims to return to their homeland .
Another turning point in the conflict was in 1991 when the Soviet Union was collapsing. At that time, Chechnya declared its independence from Russia. But since Chechnya had a lot of resources that were very valuable to Russia, they weren't willing to let it go that easily. The Russians decided to attack Chechnya, but due to the state of chaos they were in, they were defeated . In 1999, Islamic uprising in the neighboring Dagestan region of Russia resulted in accusations by Moscow that Chechen government forces supported a Dagestan rebellion. While this was denied, Chechen warlords did support the fundamentalist interpretation of Islam in Dagestan. This incursion led to a conflict with Russian forces that defeated the Chechens. Following the Chechen defeat in Dagestan, Moscow had suffered bomb blasts believed to be by various separatists and other Chechen terrorists (although never proven).
