According to a new report, deaths from civil conflicts and battles worldwide over the past three years have reached their highest level in three decades. Research by the Peace Research Institute Oslo (Prio) indicated that while battlefield deaths have decreased compared to the previous two years, since 2021, the total number of conflict-related deaths, including civilian casualties, has surged to a 30-year high.
This rise in battlefield deaths over the past three years is largely due to the civil war in Ethiopia’s Tigray region, the Russian invasion of Ukraine, and Israeli bombings in Gaza. Although conflict fatalities declined last year, partly due to a ceasefire in Tigray, there were still 122,000 conflict-related deaths in 2023. Over 71,000 people were killed in Ukraine, and approximately 23,000 died in Gaza within the last three months of 2023.
The research also revealed a significant increase in global conflict, with 59 different conflict zones recorded in 34 countries, as several states contend with multiple conflicts simultaneously. Siri Aas Rustad, the report’s author and a research professor at Prio, stated, “Violence in the world is at an all-time high… The figures suggest that the conflict landscape has become increasingly complex, with more conflict actors operating within the same country.”
Rustad noted the emergence of extremely violent conflicts in recent years, such as those in Gaza, Ukraine, and Ethiopia, leading to an international power struggle over alliances and funding, creating a more challenging international environment. She also highlighted the growing complexity of conflicts, with more than half the countries experiencing multiple conflicts, and seven countries facing more than three ongoing conflicts simultaneously. This complexity is partly due to the activities of groups like Islamic State and other armed Islamist factions in various regions.
“The increase in state-based conflicts can be attributed in part to the Islamic State expanding across Asia, Africa, and the Middle East, and an increase in other non-state actors getting involved in conflicts, such as the Jama’at Nusrat al-Islam wal-Muslimin group,” Rustad explained. This development makes it harder for aid groups and civil society organizations to navigate conflict areas and improve the lives of ordinary people.
Africa continues to be the region with the highest number of state-based conflicts, with 28 separate conflict zones. The report states that the number of conflicts in Africa has nearly doubled in the past decade, resulting in over 330,000 battlefield deaths since 2021. For the first time, the Americas are home to the most non-state conflicts, totaling 36, with Mexico being the most violent country, experiencing nearly 14,000 conflict-related deaths.
Rustad expressed concern about the emergence of new, extremely violent conflicts, noting, “It is a continuous worry that we see new extremely violent conflicts emerging more often than previously.”
