World Armed Conflicts Statistics

Armed conflict is defined by the Uppsala Conflict Data Program (UCDP) as a contested incompatibility that concerns government or territory where the use of armed force between two parties, of which at least one is the government of a state, results in at least 25 battle-related deaths. Country of conflict is a country whose government has a primary claim to the issue in dispute and not the geographical location of the conflict.

There are three different types of conflict: interstate, internal, and internationalized internal. Interstate armed conflict occurs between two or more states. Internal conflict occurs between the government of a state and one or more internal opposition groups without intervention from other states while internationalized internal armed conflict occurs with intervention from other states on one or both sides.

Battle-related deaths refer to those deaths caused by the warring parties that can be directly related to combat. This includes traditional battlefield fighting, guerrilla activities and all kinds of bombardments of military bases, cities, and villages. Deaths from urban warfare (bombs, explosions, and assassinations) also considered to be battle-related as well as civilians being killed in the crossfire, indiscriminate bombings, etc. All fatalities – military as well as civilian – incurred in such situations are counted as battle-related deaths.

See also: The 2017 Global Peace Index | Armed Conflicts | Safety and Security | Militarization