Global violence has reached its highest level in the last 25 years. That's despite a new ranking showing that the world would be growing more peaceful - if it weren't for conflicts in the Middle East.
Image: Getty Images/AFP/A. Belot
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The 2016 Global Peace Index, which measures 23 indicators, including incidents of violent crime, levels of militarization and imports of weaponry, said conflicts in the Middle East were mostly to blame for the rising levels of global conflict.
Most attacks classed as "terrorist" were concentrated in five countries: Syria, Iraq, Nigeria, Afghanistan and Pakistan.
"Quite often, in the mayhem which is happening in the Middle East currently, we lose sight of the other positive trends," said Steve Killelea, founder of the Institute for Economics and Peace (IEP), which produces the index.
"If we look in the last year, if we took out the Middle East ... the world would have become more peaceful," Killelea said.
Over 100,000 people were killed in conflicts in 2014, up from almost 20,000 in 2008. Syria, with about 67,000 such deaths in 2014, accounted for most of that increase.
Meanwhile, the United Nations said the number of displaced people had probably "far surpassed" a record 60 million in 2015. Funding for UN peacekeeping operations reached record highs in 2016, IEP said.
High costs
The economic cost of violence in 2015 was $13.6 trillion (12 trillion euros), or 13.3 percent of global GDP, according to the index. That is about 11 times the size of global foreign direct investment.
"However, peacebuilding and peacekeeping spending remains proportionately small compared to the economic impact of violence, representing just 2 percent of global losses from armed conflict," Killelea said.
Europe remains safest part of the world
Europe is the most peaceful region in the world, although the region's peace score dropped in the wake of attacks in Paris and Brussels. Iceland is the world's most peaceful country listed in the index, followed by Denmark, Austria, New Zealand and Portugal.
The United States was ranked 103rd most peaceful out of 163. Japan was ninth, Germany came in 16th and Britain was 47th. After last year's terror attacks, France dropped only one place to 46th.
The least peaceful country is Syria, followed by South Sudan, Iraq, Afghanistan and Somalia.
jbh/sms (Reuters, dpa)
Brussels, Istanbul, Jakarta: Global terror in 2016
The March 22 terror attack in Brussels was Europe's deadliest since the November 13 attacks in Paris that killed 130 people. DW takes a look at some of the major terrorist attacks across the globe in 2016.
Image: Reuters/F. Lenoir
Bombing in Istanbul: January 12
A suicide bombing on a popular square in Istanbul, Turkey's largest city, left 13 people dead and more than a dozen injured. Almost all of the dead were foreigners. The perpetrator was identified as Nabil Fadli, a Syrian devotee of the "Islamic State" (IS).
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/P. Kneffel
Jakarta bombings: January 14
Indonesian police commandos raided the house of a suspected terrorist in Cirebon, located on the island of Java, following the January 14, 2016, bomb attacks in Jakarta. A series of bombings in the capital left eight people dead and another 24 injured. IS claimed responsibility for the attack.
Image: Getty images/AFP/Str
Splendid Hotel attack: January 15
Al Qaeda-backed militants attacked the Splendid Hotel in Ouagadougou, the capital of Burkina Faso. At least 23 people from 18 countries were killed. A joint operation by French and Burkinabe forces freed many hostages.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/W. Elsen
Ankara bombing: February 17
Kurdistan Freedom Falcons claimed the attack on a convoy of buses, killing military personnel and civilians during the evening rush hour in Turkey's capital, Ankara. At least 29 people were killed and another 60 injured.
Image: Reuters/Ihlas News Agency
Hotel attack in Mogadishu: February 26
A suicide bomber rammed his car into a hotel in the Hamarweyne district of Somalia's capital, Mogadishu, and then gunmen stormed the building. The attack, by militants linked to al Shabab, killed at least 15 people and left dozens wounded.
Image: Reuters/F. Omar
Grand-Bassam shootings: March 13
Gunmen linked to al Qaeda's North Africa branch attacked the Etoile du Sud hotel in Grand Bassam, Ivory Coast. At least 18 people were killed and another 33 were injured. The hotel is popular with expats in Ivory Coast.
Image: Reuters/L. Gnago
Ankara bombing: March 13
A car filled with explosives blew up in a public square in the heart of the Turkish capital, killing 37 people and injuring 127. The Kurdistan Freedom Falcons claimed responsibility.
Image: Reuters/U. Bektas
Brussels bombings: March 22
At least 34 people were killed and more than 170 injured in coordinated attacks in Brussels. Two blasts occurred at the departures area of Brussels Airport at about 8 a.m. One hour later, an explosion hit Maelbeek metro station, which is close to the main EU buildings.
