Pakistan has been ranked seventh worldwide for civilian casualties stemming from explosive weapons in 2024, according to a new report by the British explosive violence monitor, Action on Armed Violence (AOAV). The report documented the highest global toll of such violence since 2010. AOAV recorded 67,026 deaths and injuries from explosive weapons globally last year. Of these, 59,524 were civilians—comprising 89% of the total. Civilian fatalities alone reached 24,147.
The report characterized 2024 as “the most injurious year for civilians” since the inception of the Explosive Violence Monitoring Project. Compared to 2023, global incidents escalated by 29%, civilian casualties by 69%, and civilian deaths by 50%.
In Pakistan, AOAV documented 790 civilian casualties, including 210 killed, across 248 incidents—a 14% increase in incidents from 218 the previous year. Civilian casualties decreased by 9% from 870 in 2023, while fatalities dropped by 16% from 249. Casualties among armed actors totaled 686, a 24% decrease from 899.
AOAV highlighted that “2024 saw the highest number of recorded incidents in Pakistan since 2014,” and the second highest number of civilian casualties since 2018.
Non-state actors were responsible for 76% (603) of Pakistan’s civilian casualties. Among them, unknown non-state actors accounted for 54% (423), a decline from 541 in 2023. The Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA) was linked to 119 civilian casualties—a staggering 440% increase from 22 the year prior—and constituted 15% of the total. Meanwhile, Daesh Khorasan was responsible for 45 casualties, down from 194. Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) caused 10 casualties, down from 32.
IEDs and Suicide Bombings
Pakistan recorded the second highest global civilian toll from Improvised Explosive Device (IED) attacks, with 485 casualties (139 killed) across 132 incidents. This represented a 30% decrease in civilian casualties but an 8% rise in the number of IED-related incidents.
Suicide bombings accounted for 103 civilian casualties (21 killed) across 9 incidents, a 67% decline from 27 incidents in 2023—the lowest number since 2021. All suicide attacks were carried out by non-state actors. The BLA was responsible for 2 of the 9 suicide bombings but accounted for 89% (92) of the resulting civilian harm. On average, suicide attacks in Pakistan resulted in harm to 11.4 civilians and killed 2.3 per attack.
AOAV also noted a sharp increase in casualties from ground-launched weapons, which caused 217 civilian casualties—27% of the total—representing a 54% increase from 2023.
Pakistan continues to experience elevated levels of explosive violence compared to recent years. The most recent incident occurred last week when a powerful explosion by India-backed militants targeted a school bus near Zero Point in Balochistan’s Khuzdar. At least six individuals, including four students, were martyred, and dozens of others injured.
The southwestern province, along with the neighboring Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, remains the most affected by terrorism. Pakistan has pledged a “decisive” response to the attack by Fitna al-Hindustan and warned that the perpetrators would not succeed in their objectives.
