According to the Global Terrorism Index (GTI), 2016, released by a Sydney-based think-tank, Institute for Economics & Peace, India has been ranked 7th among top 10 countries which were most impacted by terrorism in 2015.The 2016 index features top 50 countries ranked by the global terrorism index.
- According to the report, India experienced about 797 terrorist attacks in 2015 which was almost 4% higher as compared to 2014. 80% of 2015 attacks were non-lethal (death causing purpose). India recorded 289 terrorism-related deaths in 2015, which was 45 per cent less than in 2014.
- As many as 49 terrorist groups were engaged in 2015 attacks; however 31 of them failed in their plan. India experienced 7 per cent of all terrorist attacks around the world.
- The index was topped by Iraq as the worst hit country by terror in 2015. Among 2415 incidents of terrorist attack in 2015, it experienced 6,960 deaths and 11,900 injuries.
List of Top 5 countries most impacted by terrorism in 2016
| Rank | Country |
| 1 | Iraq |
| 2 | Afghanistan |
| 3 | Nigeria |
| 4 | Pakistan |
| 5 | Syria |
Findings of Report
There was about 10% decrease in the death rate from global terror attacks which was about 29,376 in 2015 as compared to 32,765 in 2014.
- The impact of terrorism on the global economy was recorded to be $635 billion over 16 years, from 2000 to 2015 which is almost equivalent to the annual gross domestic product (GDP) of Egypt and Malaysia
- Iraq accounted to 20% of overall terrorist attack in 2015 all over the world, followed by Afghanistan (14%) and Pakistan (8%).
- Iraq and Nigeria had 32% reduction in terror deaths that led to a global decline in deaths by 41% in 2015. Both countries accounted for 53% of all terrorism-related deaths across the world in 2014.
- Since 2014, the loss has declined from $106 billion to $90 billion in 2015.
- The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) countries which are the world’s most developed also witnessed a 650% increase in terrorism deaths, from 77 in 2014 to 577 in 2015.
- This was the worst year for the OECD, a 35-nation bloc, since the 2001 September 11 attacks.OECD member, Turkey, witnessed 337 deaths in 2015, the highest among OECD countries.
In 2015, France recorded 161 deaths, making it the second biggest victim of terrorism in the developed world.Over half of all attacks in the OECD countries were by ISIS.
About The Institute for Economics and Peace
The Institute for Economics and Peace (IEP) chaired by technology entrepreneur Steve Killelea, is a global think tank headquartered in Sydney, Australia.
- IEP aims to shift the world’s focus to peace as a positive, achievable, and tangible measure of human well-being and progress.
- IEP works in partnership with a number of think tanks, NGOs and academic institutions.
- It also collaborates with intergovernmental organizations such as the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, the Commonwealth Secretariat, UNDP and UN Peacebuilding Support Office.
The Global Terrorism Index (GTI)
GTI attempts to systematically rank the nations of the world according to terrorist activity.
- The index combines a number of factors associated with terrorist attacks to provide a data series for analysis by researchers and policymakers about the impact of terrorism over a 10-year period.
- The index ranks countries of the world according to their terrorist activity.
- The GTI score for a country is calculated based on weightage assigned to the total number of terrorist incidents, fatalities, injuries and property damage sustained in the year. The index also takes into consideration attacks which took place in the four previous years.