The number of attacks in India has decreased. India has moved up one rank to 14th place among countries with terrorist attacks. However, on a global scale, it still experiences a significant impact from terrorism.
The deadliest attack of 2023 was carried out by Hamas on Israel. The fourth deadliest attack was perpetrated by TTP in Pakistan.
Pakistan is now the most impacted country in the region and experienced a continued increase in incidents and deaths since 2019. When compared with the previous year, Pakistan saw the number of attacks increase by 34 per cent from 365 to 490 attacks. Similarly, the number of deaths rose by 35 per cent from 509 to 689 deaths in 2023. However, Pakistan improved substantially compared to a decade ago. The number of dead and injured has declined by 54 and 66 per cent respectively
The second deadliest attack occurred in Niger, resulting in the deaths of 200 people, although this incident is unfortunately not widely known.
Israel had the largest increase in terrorism deaths, increasing from 24 to 1,210 deaths. The attack in Israel by Hamas was the largest single terrorist attack since the inception of the GTI, the biggest since 9/11 and one of the largest terrorist attacks in history.
The four terrorist groups responsible for the most deaths in 2023 were Islamic State (IS), Hamas, Jamaat Nusrat Al-Islam wal Muslimeen (JNIM) and Al-Shabaab.
Deaths from terrorism rose to 8,352 in 2023, a 22 per cent increase from the prior year. The countries with the highest number of attacks not attributed to a group were Myanmar, Burkina Faso, Mali, and Pakistan. Of the 3,350 terrorist attacks recorded in 2023, 54 per cent were attributed to a group.
Burkina Faso become the country with the highest impact from terrorism for
the first time, with deaths from terrorism increasing by 68 per cent to 1,907. A
quarter of all terrorism deaths occurring globally were in Burkina Faso.
But nobody seems to care!!!
Here are some of the key findings from the Global Terrorism Index 2024.
1. Deaths caused by terrorism increased by 22% to 8,352, the highest level since 2017.
The Global Terrorism Index 2024 (GTI) highlights that terrorism remains a serious global threat, with total deaths from terrorism increasing by 22% to 8,352 in 2023, now at their highest since 2017. Even when excluding the October 7th attacks, deaths would still have increased by 5%. This is despite terrorist incidents decreasing by 22% to 3,350, resulting in a 56% increase in the average number of people killed per attack. This is the worst rate in almost ten years.
2. In 2023, the US accounted for 76% of terrorism-related deaths in Western democracies, amid a 15-year low in incidents.
Terrorism incidents in Western democracies recorded a drop of 55% compared to the previous year. There were 23 attacks that resulted in 21 fatalities, marking a 15-year low. However, the US recorded 76% of these fatalities from seven attacks. Five of these attacks were linked to individuals with far-right beliefs yet none had an affiliation with a far-right group.
3. The epicenter of terrorism has shifted out of the Middle East and into the Central Sahel region of sub-Saharan Africa, which now accounts for over half of all deaths from terrorism
Despite the Hamas attacks of October 7th, the number of terrorist incidents fell in the Middle East, along with North Africa, Europe and North America. The central Sahel region has conclusively overtaken the Middle East as terrorism’s epicentre with Islamic State (IS) and Jamaat Nusrat Al-Islam wal Muslimeen (JNIM), a franchise of Al-Qaeda, being the most active terrorist organisations.
4. Burkina Faso suffered the worst impact from terrorism, with deaths increasing by 68% despite attacks decreasing by 17%.
Burkina Faso suffered the worst impact from terrorism in 2023, with deaths increasing by 68% despite attacks decreasing by 17%. Terrorism in the country has deteriorated every year since 2014. Neighbouring Mali and Niger also deteriorated in 2023.
5. The impact of terrorism has become increasingly concentrated, with ten countries accounting for 87% of total terrorism-related deaths.
Terrorist activity remains highly concentrated in a small number of countries. Just ten countries accounted for 87 per cent of all terrorism deaths in 2023. This concentration of terrorist activity has intensified over the past decade, with the number of countries recording at least one death from terrorism falling from 57 in 2015 to 41 in 2023.
6. Conflict remains the primary driver of terrorism.
Violent conflict remains the primary driver of terrorism, with over 90% of attacks and 98% of terrorism deaths in 2023 taking place in countries in conflict. All ten countries most impacted by terrorism in 2022 were also involved in an armed conflict. The intensity of terrorism in conflict is also much higher than in non-conflict countries, with an average of 2.7 fatalities per attack compared to 0.48 fatalities.
7. Iraq recorded the largest improvement in the last decade with deaths from terrorism falling by 99% since the 2007 peak, to 69 in 2023.
Iraq is no longer amongst the ten countries most impacted by terrorism, with total deaths falling 65% in the past year. Prior to 2023, Iraq had been ranked in the top ten every year since the inception of the Global Terrorism Index. Total deaths have fallen 99% since their peak in 2007, with incidents falling 90%.