Deaths from terrorism up 80% in 2014, study says
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THE number of people killed globally in terrorist attacks jumped 80 percent last year to its highest level ever, a study said yesterday.
The Global Terrorism Index found that 32,658 people were killed by terrorists in 2014, up from 18,111 the previous year, the largest increase on record.
The study defines terrorism as “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.”
Nigeria-based Boko Haram and the Islamic State group were responsible for more than half of the deaths, according to the study, which collects data from 162 countries.
“Terrorism is gaining momentum at an unprecedented pace,” said Steve Killelea, executive chairman of the Institute of Economics and Peace, which produces the study.
The increase followed a 61 percent rise in 2013.
The five countries of Afghanistan, Iraq, Nigeria, Pakistan and Syria accounted for 78 percent of the deaths last year.
Iraq was the worst affected with 9,929 fatalities — the highest number from terrorism ever recorded — while the biggest rise was in Nigeria, which saw an increase of more than 300 percent to 7,512 deaths.
Western countries were much less at risk, the study said.
Britain suffered the greatest number of terrorist incidents in the West, mostly relating to Irish republican paramilitaries in Northern Ireland, it said.
Nevertheless, the attacks claimed by Islamic State in Paris that killed at least 129 last week could prove to be a milestone, Killelea said.
“The Paris incident in many ways is a watershed within Europe. It shows that Isil (Islamic State) has the capabilities to be able to launch sophisticated and deadly attacks in Europe,” he said.
Foreign fighters who have traveled to Iraq and Syria — estimated to number between 25,000 and 30,000 since 2011 — could prove a risk, he said.
“The returning fighters will have military training. The tactics of Isis are changing. They are targeting more private citizens. It’s difficult ... to see the threat disappearing,” he said.
The study estimated that the economic cost of terrorism was US$52.9 billion last year, a tenfold increase since 2000.
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