take up arms

His backing of the concept of Ivoirité, or Ivorieness, pushed soldiers in the north to take up arms and the country was divided in two.

All of them said they were prepared to take up arms again if the ceasefire breaks down.

It maintains it took up arms to protect the rights of the minority Tutsi group in DR Congo.

Originally a Marxist group, the Kurdistan Workers' Party took up arms calling for an independent state inside Turkey.

The UK also raised his threat to call for the "slaughter of white people" and to "take up arms" as a reason for the rejection.