Editing Nicaraguan Contras (section)

==History==
The Nicaraguan Contras were a collection of anti-communist rebel groups active from the late 1970s to 1990, formed to overthrow the Sandinista National Liberation Front (FSLN) government, which seized power in Nicaragua after the 1979 revolution. The Contras, primarily operating from bases in Honduras and Costa Rica, were a mix of former National Guard members under Anastasio Somoza, disaffected peasants, indigenous groups, and anti-Sandinista factions, unified by opposition to the FSLN’s Marxist-Leninist policies.

The Sandinistas, led by Daniel Ortega, overthrew Somoza’s U.S.-backed dictatorship in 1979, establishing a leftist government that aligned with Cuba and the Soviet Union. Alarmed by the spread of communism in Central America during the Cold War, the United States, under President Ronald Reagan, viewed the Sandinistas as a threat to regional stability. The Contras emerged as a U.S.-supported counterforce to destabilize the FSLN, with initial backing from Argentina’s military junta and later direct CIA involvement.