[🇵🇰] Pakistan 2nd on Global Terrorism Index with 45% surge in terror attack deaths last year, India 14th

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Date of Event: Mar 7, 2025 Source : https://www.msn.com/en-in/news/world/pakistan-2nd-on-global-terrorism-index-with-45-surge-in-terror-attack-deaths-last-year-india-14th/ar-AA1AoVxI?ocid=msedgntp&pc=U531&cvid=8d7c9ffe1f2042e08244b12a25e65a90&ei=23

Pakistan 2nd on Global Terrorism Index with 45% surge in terror attack deaths last year, India 14th​

Story by Debdutta Chakraborty
• 14h•
4 min read

Pakistan 2nd on Global Terrorism Index with 45% surge in terror attack deaths last year, India 14th
New Delhi: Pakistan ranks second on the Global Terrorism Index (GTI) 2025 released by the Institute for Economics and Peace (IEP) Wednesday. In 2024, the number of deaths due to terrorist attacks in Pakistan surged by 45 percent, with over 1,000 incidents—more than double the previous year’s count of 517. This is the first time since the first edition of the index in 2000 that Pakistan has exceeded 1,000 terrorist attacks in a single year.



Burkina Faso ranks first among 163 countries based on the impact of terrorism. India ranks 14th. The GTI evaluates terrorism through various indicators, such as the number of attacks, fatalities, injuries and the overall impact on the country.

The Afghan affiliate Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) has become the fastest-growing terror group in the country, according to the report. TTP’s attacks spiked in 2024, accounting for over half of Pakistan’s terrorism-related deaths. With 482 attacks resulting in 585 fatalities, the group caused a 91 percent increase in the number of deaths, compared to previous year.

The resurgence of the TTP is largely attributed to the Taliban’s return to power in Afghanistan. The porous Pakistan-Afghanistan border has provided the group with a safe haven, allowing them to carry out attacks with greater impunity. TTP has primarily targeted security forces and infrastructure in a bid to challenge the state’s authority, the report said.


Meanwhile, the Islamic State (IS) and its affiliates remained the deadliest terrorist organisation in 2024, responsible for 1,805 deaths across 22 countries, according to the report. The activity of the four major terrorist groups—IS, Jamaat Nusrat Al-Islam wal Muslimeen (JNIM), TTP and al-Shabaab—increased, with deaths attributed to these groups rising by 11 percent to 4,204 deaths.

Also Read: Taliban rejects US peace deal 5 yrs after Kabul’s fall. What this means for Afghan citizens, neighbours

Baloch insurgency in Pakistan, rise of ISKP​

Amid TTP’s rise, Baloch separatist groups, such as the Baloch Liberation Army (BLA) and the Balochistan Liberation Front (BLF), have also significantly increased their activity. In 2024, attacks by Baloch militants surged from 116 in 2023 to 504, with fatalities climbing over fourfold to 388, according to the report.

These groups have continued to target government infrastructure, foreign investments and Chinese initiatives under the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), arguing that such projects exploit the region’s resources without benefitting the local population. The BLA’s deadliest attack in 2024 was a suicide bombing at the Quetta railway station that killed at least 25 civilians and soldiers.



Moreover, Islamic State Khorasan Province (ISKP), initially established to challenge the Taliban, has grown into one of the most active jihadist groups globally.

Since its inception in 2015, ISKP has expanded its operations beyond Afghanistan into Pakistan, Iran, Russia and Central Asia. In 2024, the group was behind two of the deadliest terrorist attacks, one in Iran and another in Russia. ISKP has also ramped up its recruitment, producing multilingual propaganda aimed at South and Central Asia, the report noted.

Geopolitical shifts & role of tech​

Pakistan’s surge in terrorism is not an isolated case. The IEP’s GTI highlights that terrorism-related deaths worldwide remained relatively stable in 2024, although attacks surged in several regions.

The Middle East’s instability, particularly due to the Israel- Gaza conflict, and the ongoing violence in the Sahel region, have contributed significantly to global terrorism. Terrorist organisations, like IS, al-Shabaab and JNIM, continue to fuel violence across regions, while lone-wolf terrorism has become a growing threat in Western countries.


The report also highlights growing concerns over terrorism in Africa, particularly in Burkina Faso and Sahel region, where terror attacks have reached new heights. The shifting geopolitical alliances in the region, with countries like Mali, Burkina Faso and Niger strengthening ties with Russia and China, have further complicated efforts to curb terrorism.

One of the most significant trends noted in the GTI 2025 report is the increasing role of technology, particularly artificial intelligence (AI), in the operations of terrorist groups. IS, the report said, has been producing high-quality multilingual propaganda, while encrypted messaging platforms and the dark web have provided secure communication channels for terrorists.

While countries like Iraq, Afghanistan and Thailand have seen significant decline in terrorist activity, Pakistan, Syria and Mali have experienced the largest rise since 2007. Iraq, in particular, has seen a dramatic 99 percent drop in terrorism-related deaths—from 6,249 in 2007 to just 59 in 2024.


The number of countries with a recorded terrorist incident increased from 58 to 66 countries in 2024. Terrorism-related deaths decreased to 7,555 in 2024, a 13 percent drop from the previous year, following the spike caused by the 7 October attack by Hamas in 2023.

Terrorist attacks also fell by three percent, with a significant drop in Myanmar.

The Sahel region in West and Central Africa that stretches from Senegal to Sudan, home to five of the ten most affected countries, accounted for over half of global terrorism deaths.

Niger and Pakistan saw the largest increases in deaths at 94 percent and 45 percent, respectively.

(Edited by Mannat Chugh)

Also Read: Baloch separatist groups to fight under one unified military command to counter Pakistan & China