Pakistan ranked 4th on 2015 Global Terrorism Index
By Sana Jamal
ISLAMABAD – Pakistan ranked 4th out of 162 countries that were severely affected by terrorism in 2014, with a score of 9.065 out of 10, according to the Global Terrorism Index 2015 report.
There were 1,760 people killed from terrorism in Pakistan in 2014. But the country’s ranking improved one position from 2013 as the number of deaths from terrorism declined by 25 per cent.
“Pakistan was the only country in the ten most impacted countries that saw a decline in deaths and accordingly it dropped from third to fourth” the report noted. In Pakistan terrorism killed 2,356 people in 2013 whereas 1,760 people were killed in 2014, a difference of nearly 600 people. “This improvement is in part due to the further fracturing of the Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP),” the report claims.
Pakistan is among the five countries where terrorism remains highly concentrated. Iraq, Nigeria, Afghanistan, Pakistan and Syria are five countries that accounted for 78 per cent of the lives lost in 2014.
The majority of terrorism occurs in just three provinces: KPK, which recorded 35 per cent of the deaths; the Sindh province, which recorded 23 per cent of the deaths; and Balochistan recorded 20 per cent of the deaths.
From 1998 to 2006 Pakistan averaged 153 deaths per year, whereas from 2007 to 2014 the number of deaths had jumped to an average of 1,592.
Terrorism in Pakistan is strongly influenced by its proximity to Afghanistan with most attacks occurring near the border and involving the Taliban. Private citizens and educational institutions are the biggest target for terrorism in Pakistan. In 2014 there were 103 attacks on schools which caused 201 deaths and 203 injuries.
Peshawar attack among 20 most fatal terrorist attacks of 2014
The 2014 Peshawar school attack was among the 20 most fatal terrorist attacks in 2014, the report highlights. At least 150 students and staff were killed and 131 were wounded in the deadly attack when terrorists detonated an explosives-laden vehicle and then stormed the Army Public School in Peshawar city, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, Pakistan. All seven attackers were either killed by security forces or detonated their explosives-laden vests.
10 countries where terrorism had the greatest impact in 2014
Afghanistan, Iraq and Pakistan have all been ranked in the ten countries with the highest number of deaths from terrorism for every year in the last ten years. Iraq had 25 per cent of all terrorist incidents, followed by Pakistan with 14 per cent and Afghanistan with 12 per cent.
The ten countries with the highest number of deaths in 2014 accounted for 88 per cent of the global total.
Global terrorism continues to rise at an unprecedented pace
Global terrorism is at the highest level it has ever been and continues to rise at an “unprecedented pace”, according to a new report. Over 32,000 people were killed in terrorist attacks in 2014, which reveals a dramatic rise in terrorism over the last 15 years, the report claims.
The Global Terrorism Index 2015 by Institute for Economics and Peace provides a comprehensive summary of the impact of terrorism in 162 countries, (99% of the world’s population).
“Ten of the eleven countries most affected by terrorism also have the highest rates of refugees and internal displacement. This highlights the strong inter-connectedness between the current refugee crisis, terrorism and conflict” said Steve Killelea, IEP Founder and Executive Chairman said.
There were over 16 million refugees and IDPs from the five countries with the highest levels of terrorism in 2014. While Europe struggles to accommodate the recent influx of arrivals, Turkey, Pakistan and Lebanon continue to host nearly one-third of the world’s refugees, or 4.25 million displaced people.
Political violence and conflict have been termed as the two common factors most closely associated with terrorism. However, in the West, socio-economic factors such as youth unemployment and drug crime correlate with terrorism. And in less developed countries, terrorism shows stronger associations with ongoing conflict, corruption and violence” Steve Killelea said.
It is important to implement policies that aim to address socio-political factors that foster terrorism. “This includes reducing state-sponsored violence, diffusing group grievances, and improving respect for human rights and religious freedoms, while considering cultural nuances,” Steve said.
This story was originally published here.
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