More armed conflicts involving states were active in 2025 than in any year since 1946, and civilians bear much of the cost through deaths and injuries, hunger, displacement and attacks on the hospitals, schools and aid workers they depend on.
Updated October 14, 2026. Written from the sources listed below, not independently peer-reviewed.
The Uppsala Conflict Data Program counts armed conflicts in which at least one side is a state. Roughly how many such conflicts were active worldwide in 2025?
244,600
Deaths in organized violence
UCDP best estimate for 2025 across armed conflicts and one-sided violence, combatants and civilians combined, up from about 187,000 in 2024. Only 2022 was deadlier since 1994.
Data year 2025. Source: Uppsala Conflict Data Program, 2026
37,163
Civilian deaths documented by the UN
Direct civilian deaths recorded in 20 of the world's deadliest conflicts, 23% fewer than the at least 48,011 recorded for 2024. The status of a further 13,165 victims could not be determined.
Data year 2025. Source: United Nations Statistics Division, 2026
24,174
Children affected by grave violations
Children affected by 38,558 grave violations verified by the UN, the highest number of children affected since the UN's monitoring mandate began. Verified cases are a minimum.
Data year 2025. Source: United Nations General Assembly and Security Council, 2026
Unit: conflicts
Conflicts in which at least one side is a state and that caused at least 25 battle-related deaths in the year, as reported by UCDP in its 2026 review. UCDP gives no year-by-year counts between 2010 and 2023 in the text, so those years are not shown. 2025 is the highest count since records began in 1946. Deaths are concentrated in a few wars: in 2025 the war in Ukraine alone accounted for at least 94,700 of the 153,600 deaths UCDP recorded in state-based conflicts.
SDG target 16.1 calls for significantly reducing all forms of violence and related death rates everywhere. Under indicator 16.1.2, the UN recorded at least 48,011 civilian deaths in armed conflicts in 2024, the highest since the 2030 Agenda was adopted. In 2025 the documented total fell by 23% to 37,163, ending three years of increases, and fewer deaths were recorded in 15 of the 20 deadliest conflicts. Sudan and the Democratic Republic of the Congo, however, saw sharp increases. The target sets no numerical goal, and with a record number of active conflicts, the 2025 decline is not yet a sign that the world is on track.
Children were 20% and women and girls 25% of the civilian deaths the UN recorded in armed conflicts in 2025. Where the cause could be identified, heavy weapons and explosive munitions were the most common (41%), followed by small arms and light weapons (39%).
Source: United Nations Statistics Division, 2026Landmines and explosive remnants of war killed or injured 6,279 people in 2024, the highest annual total since 2020. Civilians made up 90% of them, and almost half of the civilian casualties were children.
Source: International Campaign to Ban Landmines – Cluster Munition Coalition, 2025The UN recorded 1,356 conflict-related attacks on health care in 18 settings in 2025, which killed 1,980 people, up from 802 incidents in 2018, when monitoring began. More than 332 humanitarian workers were killed, the third year in a row of record deaths; most were local staff serving their own communities.
Source: United Nations Security Council, 2026The UN reported over 9,300 cases of conflict-related sexual violence in 2025, about 95% of them against women and girls. Because such violence is heavily under-reported, these figures are an indication rather than a full count.
Source: United Nations Security Council, 2026Each country is shaded by its latest available value, so you can see where the gap is widest. Hover or tap a country, search for one, or open the full table.
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Values in per 100,000 people.
UCDP best estimates of deaths of combatants and civilians in all types of organized violence in 2025, assigned to the country where each event took place (events outside borders go to the nearest country) and divided by that country's population. Most countries recorded no deaths and appear in the lightest class; deaths are counted where they occurred, not by the nationality of victims or the parties involved, and the map makes no judgement about responsibility, borders or territorial status.
Source: Uppsala Conflict Data Program (UCDP), via Our World in Data. Latest year available per country; years differ.
Values load from Our World in Data. Simplified Natural Earth borders; they imply no position on disputed territories.
Instead of one “percent solved” score, DO GOOD rates three separate dimensions. A problem can have mature solutions that still reach too few people. These ratings are an editorial reading of the sources on this page, not a measured index.
Has the situation improved in the real world?
LowIn 2025 UCDP recorded the most state-based conflicts since 1946 and the second-highest death toll from organized violence since 1994. The UN verified grave violations affecting 24,174 children, the highest number since its monitoring mandate began.
How mature and validated are the available solutions?
ModerateThe core tools are long established: the rules of international humanitarian law, humanitarian aid, mine clearance and UN monitoring. They work where they are respected and funded, but the UN Secretary-General describes widespread disregard of these rules, and newer measures, such as the political declaration on explosive weapons in populated areas, are voluntary.
How widely are effective solutions actually used?
LowProtection reaches only part of those in need. The 2026 humanitarian appeal identifies 239 million people in need but prioritises 87 million of them, and from October 2025 all UN peacekeeping operations had to make significant cuts because of liquidity shortfalls.
UCDP and the UN use published methods, but their figures are estimates or documented minimums. The UN could not determine the status of 13,165 victims in 2025, it lacks access to some conflict areas, and its count for 2024 rose from over 36,000 civilian deaths in 14 conflict contexts in one report to at least 48,011 in a later one as coverage widened.
The number of state-based conflicts rose from 31 in 2010 to 65 in 2025, and deaths from organized violence rose by about 30% between 2024 and 2025. The UN's count of documented civilian deaths fell in 2025, but rose sharply in Sudan and the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
Armed conflict has become more frequent over the past fifteen years. The Uppsala Conflict Data Program (UCDP) recorded 65 conflicts involving at least one state in 2025, the most since its records begin in 1946, including eight between states and 13 wars with at least 1,000 battle-related deaths. Its best estimate of deaths from all forms of organized violence rose from about 187,000 in 2024 to 244,600 in 2025, a level exceeded only in 2022 since the genocide in Rwanda in 1994. Much of the increase came from deliberate violence against civilians, which rose about fivefold to 76,500 deaths, driven mainly by events in Sudan. The deadliest conflicts of the year were the war in Ukraine, where UCDP recorded at least 94,700 deaths, the Israel–Hamas war and the war in Sudan.
Behind the battle figures are civilians. The UN documented 37,163 direct civilian deaths in 20 of the world's deadliest conflicts in 2025; one in five was a child and one in four a woman or girl. Explosive weapons used in towns and cities are a leading cause of harm: civilians make up 90% of the people killed or injured when such weapons are used in populated areas. Conflict also destroys what people need to survive, from hospitals and schools to water and power systems. It was the main driver of acute food insecurity for 147 million people in 2025, and around 204 million people live in areas controlled or contested by armed groups. The UN Secretary-General warns that the scale of civilian harm far outweighs the political will and investment to prevent it.
No single number captures the human cost of war. Researchers and UN bodies count different things, with different methods, and their figures should not be added together:
Armed conflicts and wars (UCDP)
UCDP counts a conflict when organized groups, or one organized group and civilians, are in a dispute that causes at least 25 deaths in a calendar year. It distinguishes state-based conflicts (including those between states), conflicts between non-state groups, and one-sided violence against civilians. A conflict with at least 1,000 battle-related deaths in a year is called a war. Death figures are best estimates built from news reports, other contemporary sources and research, and include both combatants and civilians.
Conflict-related civilian deaths (SDG 16.1.2)
The UN Human Rights Office (OHCHR) compiles documented direct deaths of civilians in armed conflicts as the official SDG indicator. For 2025 it covered 20 of the world's deadliest conflicts. It counts only deaths that could be documented, so it is a minimum, and for a further 13,165 victims it could not be determined whether they were civilians.
Grave violations against children
A UN monitoring and reporting mechanism verifies six grave violations against children in specific conflict situations: killing and maiming, recruitment and use, sexual violence, abduction, attacks on schools and hospitals, and denial of humanitarian access. Only cases the UN has verified are counted, so the totals are lower than the real numbers.
Casualties from landmines and explosive remnants
The Landmine Monitor, run by civil society, records people killed or injured each year by landmines, unexploded ordnance and other explosive remnants of war, often long after fighting has stopped.
What works
The Geneva Conventions and related rules require parties to a conflict to distinguish between combatants and civilians, avoid excessive civilian harm and let humanitarian aid through. National policies on the protection of civilians, as adopted in Nigeria, translate these rules into military guidance, training and accountability.
Limits
The rules are only as strong as the will to follow them. The UN reports that parties to conflict often failed to uphold or actively undermined their obligations in 2025 and committed grave violations against children with near-total impunity.
What works
Civilians make up 90% of those harmed when explosive weapons are used in populated areas. A political declaration adopted by states commits them to restrict such use, and a second international conference on it was held in Costa Rica in November 2025. Some states have issued or revised military policy and guidance to limit the use of these weapons.
Limits
The declaration is voluntary and not all states have endorsed it. Explosive weapons remained a leading cause of civilian harm in 2025, and the UN calls for wider support and for arms transfers to be conditioned on its implementation.
What works
The Mine Ban Treaty has 166 States Parties, and 31 of them have cleared all antipersonnel mines from their territory. Clearing land, teaching people to recognise dangerous items and supporting survivors make it possible for families to return home and farm safely.
Limits
The total area cleared fell in 2024 because of reduced funding and insecurity, donor support for victim assistance fell by almost a quarter, and five States Parties began withdrawing from the treaty in 2025.
What works
Food, water, health care, shelter and protection services keep people alive in conflict zones. The 2026 Global Humanitarian Overview seeks US$33 billion to reach 135 million of the 239 million people in need, with a prioritised appeal of US$23 billion for 87 million people facing the most urgent needs.
Limits
Severe funding cuts in 2025 left many civilians without life-saving assistance. The 2026 appeal itself plans to reach only part of the people in need, and aid workers face growing danger.
What works
UN monitoring of grave violations gives a basis for action plans with armed forces and groups to end the recruitment and use of children. In 2025, 13,112 children formerly associated with armed forces or groups received protection or reintegration support.
Limits
Recruitment continues at scale: the UN verified the recruitment and use of 6,607 children in 2025, and 1,667 children were detained for actual or alleged association with armed groups or for national security reasons.
Promising, but not proven at scale. The stage shows how far each approach has come; it is not a recommendation.
Brazil, China, France, Jordan, Kazakhstan and South Africa launched an initiative together with the International Committee of the Red Cross to build political commitment to international humanitarian law. Its practical effect on behaviour in conflicts has not yet been shown.
A Declaration for the Protection of Humanitarian Personnel was launched in 2025 after record numbers of aid workers were killed. The Secretary-General urges states to join it; it adds political commitments rather than new legal obligations.
Drone attacks in conflict settings increased by at least 4,000% between 2020 and 2024. A UN group of governmental experts made progress in 2025 on elements of a possible instrument on autonomous weapons, and the Secretary-General calls for a legally binding instrument and for AI decision-support systems never to replace human judgement. No such instrument has been agreed.
Faced with lower funding, the 2026 humanitarian appeal sets out a prioritised plan to reach 87 million people with the most urgent needs for US$23 billion. It aims to direct scarce money where lives are most at risk, but leaves many people in need outside the plan.
Coordination gap
Grave violations against children continued with near-total impunity in 2025, and government forces were responsible for a majority of them. The Secretary-General calls on states to investigate alleged serious violations, prosecute those responsible, provide reparations and strengthen national capacity to do so.
Implementation gap
Severe funding cuts in 2025 left many civilians without life-saving assistance, and from October all UN peacekeeping operations had to make significant cuts. In South Sudan, budget cuts and base closures coincided with renewed hostilities.
Implementation gap
More than 332 humanitarian workers were killed in 2025, the third record year in a row, and 1,356 attacks on health care were recorded. Every attack reduces the services that civilians can reach.
Technology gap
Drone attacks in conflict settings increased by at least 4,000% between 2020 and 2024, driven by technological advances, lower costs and mass production. The UN warns that AI systems used in warfare rely on data that are often biased, incomplete or outdated.
Coordination gap
Five States Parties renounced their obligations under the Mine Ban Treaty within a few months in 2025 and are withdrawing from it, while 31 states have yet to join. This comes as recorded casualties from landmines and explosive remnants of war reached their highest annual total since 2020.
Knowledge gap
In 2025 the UN could not determine whether 13,165 victims of conflict were civilians, and sexual violence is heavily under-reported. Where monitors cannot reach conflict areas, deaths and abuses go uncounted and responses are planned on partial evidence.
Unresolved questions, not vetted breakthroughs. Answering any of them would change what is possible.
Which combinations of training, military doctrine, public reporting, sanctions and legal accountability actually change how armed forces and groups treat civilians, and how can this be measured?
Under which safeguards could AI-supported decision systems help forces comply with humanitarian law, and when do biased or incomplete data make targeting errors more likely?
Conflict duration has nearly doubled over the past thirty years. Which mediation approaches, ceasefire designs and peace agreements lead to lasting reductions in violence against civilians?
How can remote sensing, local networks and statistical methods close gaps in casualty data, including the status of victims and the indirect deaths caused by hunger and disease, without putting sources at risk?
If you donate, unearmarked gifts to established humanitarian organisations let them respond where needs are greatest; check that they publish how funds were spent. DO GOOD's own Ukraine project supports families affected by the war with trauma-informed care and humanitarian aid.
The International Committee of the Red Cross and national Red Cross and Red Crescent societies offer free introductions to international humanitarian law, and many also train volunteers in first aid. Knowing the rules helps you judge reports and public debates.
Images and claims from conflict zones are often unverified, misleading or distressing. Before sharing, check them against UN or established humanitarian sources, and avoid spreading graphic material or content that identifies people at risk.
Find out whether your country has endorsed the political declaration on explosive weapons in populated areas, belongs to the Mine Ban Treaty and maintains its humanitarian funding, and raise these questions with your elected representatives.
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Uppsala Conflict Data Program (UCDP), Journal of Peace Research, published 2026
UCDP's annual peer-reviewed review of 2025 data (Davies, Pettersson and Öberg): 65 state-based conflicts, 8 interstate conflicts, 13 wars, 244,600 deaths in organized violence by type, the 2010-2025 conflict count and the deadliest conflicts.
United Nations Security Council, published 2026
Annual UN report covering 2025: civilian deaths in 20 conflicts, explosive weapons, attacks on health care, humanitarian workers killed, conflict-related sexual violence, hunger, missing persons, drones and AI, peacekeeping cuts, treaty withdrawals and recommendations.
United Nations Statistics Division (data from OHCHR), published 2026
Official UN progress report on SDG 16, including indicator 16.1.2: 37,163 documented civilian deaths in 2025 versus at least 48,011 in 2024, shares of women and children, weapons used and conflicts with rising deaths.
United Nations General Assembly and Security Council, published 2026
Annual report on grave violations against children in 2025: 38,558 verified violations affecting 24,174 children, killing and maiming, recruitment, abduction, denial of humanitarian access and reintegration support.
UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), published 2025
The UN-coordinated humanitarian appeal for 2026: 239 million people in need, prioritised plan for 87 million, conflict as the main driver of needs, people living in areas controlled by armed groups and civilian harm from explosive weapons.
International Campaign to Ban Landmines – Cluster Munition Coalition (ICBL-CMC), published 2025
Annual civil-society monitor of the Mine Ban Treaty with 2024 data: 6,279 casualties from landmines and explosive remnants of war, civilian and child shares, treaty membership, clearance completions, funding and withdrawals.