Pak ranks 7th in civilian deaths from blasts in 2024, worse than some countries at war
Pakistan was the seventh most-affected country in the world for civilian casualties resulting from explosive weapons in 2024, recording 790 civilian casualties, including 210 deaths, according to a new report that highlights the alarming state of civilian safety in the country.Although the total number of civilian casualties in 2024 represented a nine per cent decrease compared to 2023, the number of recorded incidents rose by 11 per cent, from 218 in the previous year, according to the UK-based NGO Action on Armed Violence (AOAV). The country also ranked seventh among the fifteen worst-affected countries and territories documented in the report.advertisementCountries ahead of Pakistan on the list include Palestine (Gaza), Ukraine, Lebanon, Sudan, Myanmar, and Syria -- all either war-torn or embroiled in civil conflict. Nations that have a better situation than Pakistan include Russia, Nigeria, Yemen, Iran, and Israel among others, and many among them are also engaged in war or armed conflict.
The report also noted that 2024 saw the highest number of explosive violence incidents in Pakistan since 2014 and the second-highest number of civilian casualties since 2018. It was also the second-worst year for armed actor casualties since 2015.The vast majority of civilian harm (76%) was attributed to non-state actors. The Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA) was identified as a major perpetrator, responsible for 119 civilian casualties in Pakistan during the year.advertisementThe BLA also emerged as one of the largest non-state users of explosive weapons globally in 2024, accounting for 15 per cent of Pakistan's civilian casualties, a staggering 440 per cent increase from twenty-two incidents in 2023.Another key perpetrator in Pakistan was the Islamic State – Khorasan Province (IS-KP), responsible for forty-five civilian casualties. Unknown non-state actors were linked to 54 per cent of Pakistan's civilian casualties in 2024, totalling 423 individuals—a decrease from 541 the previous year.The report also underscored that all suicide bombings in Pakistan in 2024 were carried out by non-state actors. Of the known actors, the BLA was responsible for just two per cent of the nine recorded suicide bombing incidents but caused a disproportionately high 89 per cent (92) of the resulting civilian casualties. Unknown non-state actors were linked to six per cent (five) of these incidents and 11 per cent of the civilian casualties.Tune InMust Watch
IN THIS STORY#Pakistan
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Hans India
44 minutes ago
- Hans India
Maharashtra: Wife kills husband with axe 3 weeks after marriage
Sangli: Just days after the gruesome Raja Raghuvanshi murder case sent shockwaves across the country, another chilling crime involving a newlywed couple has emerged, this time from Maharashtra, where a woman, married for just three weeks, allegedly killed her husband. The woman used an axe to kill her husband while he slept following a heated argument over the latter's insistence on consummating their marriage 15 days after the wedding. The incident took place in Sangli district on the night of June 10, officials confirmed on Thursday. According to the police, the couple -- Anil Lokhande and Radhika Lokhande -- were married on May 23. The officials mentioned that it was Anil's second marriage. His first wife had died of cancer. On Tuesday night, the couple engaged in a violent altercation over consummation that reportedly continued late into the night. Radhika was exasperated by Anil's insistence, and around midnight, when he retired to bed, in a sudden act of rage, she picked up an axe and fatally struck her husband on the head, the officials said. He died instantly, officials said. Shortly after committing the murder, Radhika reportedly called her cousin and confessed to the crime. Police arrested her on Wednesday and produced her before a magistrate, who remanded her to two days' police custody. A case has been registered against her under Section 103 (1) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), which pertains to murder. Police sources indicate that ongoing family discord may have led to the crime, though further investigations are underway to determine the precise motive. This shocking incident comes close on the heels of the sensational murder of Indore-based Raja Raghuvanshi during his honeymoon in Meghalaya. Raja and his wife, Sonam Raghuvanshi, were married on May 11 and had left for their honeymoon on May 20. Merely three days into the trip, both went missing. The case, which initially began as a missing person report, took a sinister turn when Raja's body was discovered in a deep gorge in Meghalaya on June 2. His autopsy revealed two severe head injuries -- one at the back and another on the front -- confirming a brutal murder. Further investigation uncovered a premeditated plot allegedly orchestrated by Sonam, her lover Raj Kushwaha, and three of his friends -- Akash Rajput, Anand Kurmi, and Vishal Singh Chauhan. On June 7, Sonam surrendered in Ghazipur, Uttar Pradesh. All five accused, including Sonam and Raj, confessed to the crime and have been remanded to eight days of police custody.
Indian Express
an hour ago
- Indian Express
Why Andhra Pradesh & Karnataka are fighting over mangoes
By an order issued by the district collector of Chittoor on June 7, the Andhra Pradesh government has banned the entry of juicy Totapuri mangoes from other states into Chittoor district, a decision that has put it at loggerheads with neighbouring Karnataka. Karnataka Chief Secretary Shalini Rajneesh, in a letter dated June 10, and Chief Minister Siddaramaiah, in a letter dated June 11, have asked their Andhra Pradesh counterparts — K Vijayanand and N Chandrababu Naidu, respectively — to roll back the order said to be causing significant distress to mango farmers in Karnataka. A juicy mango Totapuri, also known as Bangalore or Sandersha, is a mango cultivar grown in the bordering districts of Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, and Tamil Nadu. I have written to Andhra Pradesh CM Shri @ncbn requesting him to withdraw the ban on the entry of Totapuri Mangoes from Karnataka into Chittoor district. This ban hurts thousands of farmers and traders. Cooperation between states is vital for the prosperity of our people. — Siddaramaiah (@siddaramaiah) June 12, 2025 Known for their elongated shape and distinct parrot beak-like tip (hence 'Totapuri'), the variety is valued for its juice and pulp. Totapuri mangoes are used aplenty in mango drinks manufactured and distributed across the country. Food and beverage processors, including multinational companies, buy these mangoes directly from farmers. Notably, Andhra Pradesh's Chittoor district is home to several mango processing and pulp extraction companies that procure Totapuri mangoes from local markets. District officials, with the support of revenue, forest, marketing and police departments, have banned Totapuri mangoes from Karnataka entering Chittoor. The reason: the mangoes from Karnataka are cheaper than ones being grown in Andhra Pradesh. 'Every year, the Andhra government announces the price at which processors should purchase Totapuri mangoes,' an Andhra Pradesh government source told The Indian Express. 'This year the state government has announced the price at Rs 8 per kg. Keeping in mind the low price and high supplies the government has agreed to provide an additional Rs 4 per kg to the farmers,' the source said. In Karnataka, however, the price is just Rs 5 to Rs 6 per kg, the Andhra Pradesh government claims. 'If we allow [Karnataka] mangoes to reach the Andhra Pradesh market, the processors will prefer these mangoes over ones grown in the state, which are priced higher. This will plunge Andhra farmers into distress,' the AP government source said. With 5.5 lakh tones expected to be procured, the government is set to spend around Rs 220 crore on these mangoes An escalating standoff 'This abrupt and unilateral move has caused considerable hardship to mango growers in Karnataka, particularly those in the border regions who cultivate Totapuri mangoes in substantial quantities. These farmers have long relied on robust linkages with Chittoor-based processing and pulp extraction units for marketing their produce,' said Siddaramaiah, adding that the ban 'is contrary to the spirit of cooperative federalism'. He further said: 'The current restriction has disrupted this well-established supply chain and threatens significant post-harvest losses, directly impacting the livelihoods of thousands of farmers'. Chief Secretary Rajneesh's letter echoed similar concerns. Notably, both letters said that Karnataka farmers may take retaliatory measures, including blocking of vegetable and other agricultural commodities' sales across the border from Andhra Pradesh to Karnataka, which would 'escalate inter-state tensions,' Rajneesh wrote. This standoff comes in the context of the two neighbouring states being ruled by parties sitting across the aisle in Parliament: while the Congress is in power in Karnataka, the Andhra Pradesh government is headed by the Telugu Desam Party (TDP), a key ally in the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance at the Centre. So far, the Andhra Pradesh government has not officially responded to the letters from Karnataka.
NDTV
an hour ago
- NDTV
Is This How India Will 'Dehyphenate' Itself From Pakistan?
"The enemy is anybody who's going to get you killed, no matter which side he's on," said Yossarian, the 'hero' of Joseph Heller's 1961 cult classic Catch-22. This absurdly dark and hilarious novel, set during the Second World War, contains some of the most astute observations on war and peace, a theme for our times. Or all times. Apart from one's own commanders, like Colonel Cathcart of Catch-22, the enemy could also be suboptimal actions driven by fallacious estimations of self. While our armed forces, as commanded, demonstrated their professionalism and precision, the same has been seen as lacking from other quarters in the aftermath of Operation Sindoor. Despite India's consistent attempts at keeping the Kashmir issue out of the arena of international interference, Pakistan has doubled down on its efforts to the contrary and achieved at least some degree of success. India, regrettably, has also got 're-hyphenated' with Pakistan despite our government's forceful iterations that the victims and perpetrators of terrorism cannot be treated at par by the international community. Pak Is No Match The irony of the current situation is that India may have played some part in bringing this rehyphenation upon itself. Rather than setting the paradigm, India is seen as playing catch-up in its diplomatic oeuvre. Immediately after the high offices of the Pakistani government, including Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif, embarked on their international mission to convince the world about India's alleged aggression, seven all-party committees were dispatched by India to different parts of the world. We are yet to see what such delegations have achieved for the long run, apart from generating newsy moments. As the world's fourth-largest economy, India has a stature that Pakistan can only aspire to achieve. Sharif's statement about India being more wary of the cost of war than Pakistan because the latter is still in a struggling phase is darkly humorous and unintentionally ingenious. It doesn't behove a superpower like India to be following Pakistan's diplomatic footsteps. The soon-to-retire chief of the Florida-based United States Central Command, General Michael E. Kurilla, has recently called Pakistan a "phenomenal partner" whose value "will only increase as the Taliban continues to face security challenges within its borders". President Donald Trump, too, has been underscoring how the US values its "beautiful" relationship with both India and Pakistan, which have "great" leaders. Rather than dismissing this 'both-siding' as classic Trump balderdash, India should devise a robust plan to offset Pakistan's geopolitical arm-twisting of the West. Pak's Sneaky Ways The Afghanistan-Pakistan hyphenation is what has been driving the West's response to Islamabad's backing of the terror outfits in Kashmir and other parts of India. Pakistan has managed to convince the West, especially the US, of its indispensable status in eliminating actors that pose a direct threat to people and property in the Global North. India's renewed engagement with the Taliban, short of recognising them, has only limited potential to counter Pakistan's perceived value as a partner of the West to counter terrorist threats originating from Central and South Asia. The spectre of ISIS-K looms large on any Western attempt at holding Pakistan responsible for terror activities in India. Pakistan has utilised multilateral platforms, such as the UN, to its utmost benefit. Currently, as a non-permanent member of the UNSC, Pakistan serves as the Chair of the 1988 Taliban Sanctions Committee, Vice Chair of the 1373 Counter-Terrorism Committee, and Co-Chair of two informal working groups. It is also set to become the rotational president of the UNSC in July. While these positions do not hold any substantive powers, Pakistan can be expected to initiate meetings and debates to internationalise the Kashmir issue. The Kashmir Question India may have brushed these concerns away in the past, upholding its policy of keeping Kashmir as an internal matter, but it will appear a little hypocritical now. Once you reach out to the world with an aim to share your side of the story, you cannot accuse the other party of doing the same. There has been a spirit of tentativeness with which multilateral platforms have treated India-Pakistan tensions. A large number of nations are not even aware of Kashmir and the eight-decade-long dispute over it. All they have perhaps seen is a half-hearted inscription on UN maps showing the border between the two countries. More importantly, India can no longer claim that it does not care for the "opinion" of the international community, particularly the US, when it was a foreign commander in chief of the armed forces who "announced" - however unwarrantedly - the ceasefire or the "pause" during Operation Sindoor. Classical Greek playwright and master of comedies Aristophanes said, "Men of sense often learn from their enemies. It is from their foes, not their friends, that cities learn the lesson of building high walls and ships of war; and this lesson saves their children, their homes, and their properties". While it may be important to learn from Pakistan the art of conning everyone all the time, India must continue to act like the regional power and global arbiter that it posits itself as.
