Global Terrorism Index

The number of terrorist attacks around the world has increased dramatically; over 80% of all terrorism occurs in only 5 countries. Get the facts on terrorism.

Terrorism has become a global phenomenon with a 61% increase in the number of people killed in terrorist attacks over the last year. The 2014 Global Terrorism Index provides a fact-based understanding of terrorism and its impact.

KEY FACTS:

17,958 people were killed in terrorist attacks last year, that’s 61% more than the previous year.

82% of all deaths from terrorist attack occur in just 5 countries: Iraq, Afghanistan, Pakistan, Nigeria and Syria.

Last year terrorism was dominated by four groups: the Taliban, Boko Haram, ISIL, and al Qa’ida.

More than 90% of all terrorist attacks occur in countries that have gross human rights violations.

40 times more people are killed by homicides than terrorist attacks.

RESULTS:

Iraq is the country most impacted by terrorism; last year there were 2,492 terrorist attacks in Iraq which killed 6,362 people.

In 2013, 24 countries experienced terrorist attacks that killed more than 50 people. There were 75 countries that did not experience a terrorist attack.

QUOTE:

“Terrorism doesn’t arise on its own; by identifying the factors associated with it, long term policies can be implemented to improve the underlying environment that nurtures terrorism. The most significant actions that can be taken are to reduce state-sponsored violence, reduce group grievances and hostilities, and improve effective and community-supported policing.” Steve Killelea

TERRORIST GROUPS AND TARGETS

In 2013, 66% of all fatalities from claimed terrorist attacks were caused by four terrorist groups: the Taliban, Boko Haram , ISIL and al-Qa’ida. The primary targets of terrorist attacks are citizens and private property.

CAUSES OF TERRORISM

The three main factors associated with terrorism are state sponsored violence such as extra-judicial killings, group grievances and high levels of criminality. Poverty rates, levels of schools attendance and most economic factors have no association with terrorism. Most terrorist attacks use explosives; since 2000 only 5% were suicide attacks.

HOW TERRORIST GROUPS END

Since the 1960s, 83% of terrorist organisations that ended, ceased to operate due to policing or politicisation. Only 7% ended due to military intervention.

TERRORISM IN CONTEXT

Although terrorism is on the increase and a major concern compared to other forms of violence, it is relatively small when compared to the 437,000 people killed by homicide in 2013. In the US an individual is 64 times more likely to be victim of a homicide than terrorism.

DEFINITION OF TERRORISM

The definition of terrorism used by the Global Terrorism Index is: “the threatened or actual use of illegal force and violence by a non-state actor to attain a political, economic, religious or social goal through fear, coercion, or intimidation”.

ABOUT THE GLOBAL TERRORISM INDEX

The Global Terrorism Index, produced by Institute for Economics & Peace, ranks countries according the impact of terrorist activities as well as analysing the economic and social dimensions associated with terrorism.

The index scores 162 countries, covering 99.6% of the world’s population, and examines trends from 2000 to 2013. The indicators used include the number of terrorist incidents, fatalities, injuries and property damage.

Explore the full methodology, including the indicators, the source and more on page 85 of the Global Terrorism Index Report.