A new report by Armed Conflict Location and Event Data (ACLED) has revealed that one in six people was exposed to conflict in 2025.
Amid sustained levels of violence globally, civilians are facing more danger than ever. In 2025, there were more than 56,000 incidents of violence directed at civilians. This is the highest level we’ve recorded of this type of violence in the last five years.
The ACLED Conflict Index 2025, estimates that 831 million people, 16% of the global population, have been exposed to conflict. Non-state armed groups and mobs are responsible for approximately two-thirds of all violence targeting civilians and 59% of civilian fatalities in 2025.
The Rapid Support Forces (RSF), the Darfur-based paramilitary group locked in a years-long conflict with the Sudanese army, killed more civilians in 2025 than any other non-state armed group.
The report says that in the first 11 months of 2025, ACLED recorded over 4,200 civilians killed in RSF attacks – 11% of all recorded fatalities caused by non-state armed groups globally. This figure is likely to be a significant undercount. The RSF’s ruthless tactics, including extrajudicial killings, shelling of residential areas, and ethnically motivated violence, may have killed thousands more, rekindling accusations of genocide and ethnic cleansing against Darfur’s non-Arab population.
Palestine, Mexico, and Ukraine top the list as the most dangerous places in the world, reflecting how fast conflict dynamics continue to shift across regions, according to the report.
Palestine now ranks as the third most deadly context globally, even with the recent drop in fatalities following ceasefires in Gaza.
