Global terrorism deaths jump 80%, Boko Haram accounts for 51% deaths in 2014 — Reports

The number of people killed in terrorist attacks has jumped by 80 per cent to 32,658 in 2014 as 11 nations suffered more than 500 deaths.

This is contained in a think tank report released on Tuesday in London by the Institute for Economics and Peace in its 2015 Global terrorism index.

It noted that the terrorists linked to Islamic State and Boko Haram accounted for 51 per cent of the deaths in 2014.

Steve Killelea, the think tank’s founder, said the institute estimated the cost of terrorism in 2014 at 52.9 billion dollars.

He said five nations including, Afghanistan, Iraq, Nigeria, Pakistan and Syria bore the brunt of the attacks, suffering 78 per cent of the deaths recorded.

Killelea said almost 10,000 people died in terrorist attacks in Iraq, while the number of deaths in Nigeria soared to more than 7,500, it said.

"The significant increase in terrorist activity has meant that its ramifications are being felt more widely throughout the world.

Killelea said 10 of the 11 nations most affected by terrorism were also among those with the highest rates of refugees and internal displacement.

"This highlights the strong interconnection between the current refugee crisis, terrorism and conflict," it said. (dpa/NAN)