Global Armed Conflicts Hit Highest Level Since WWII in 2025, PRIO Study Finds

The number of armed conflicts underway around the globe reached its highest level since World War II in 2025, according to a study published on Tuesday by the Peace Research Institute Oslo (PRIO).

Researchers found there were 65 state-based conflicts – involving at least one government actor – the highest number since systematic records began in 1946. The report estimates that about 245,000 people were killed in battle-related violence last year, making it one of the deadliest years in recent decades.

“The world today is … far more fragmented,” the researchers said, describing an “unprecedented” number of simultaneous wars fueled by both long-running crises and new outbreaks of large-scale fighting. They cited the escalation of the Ukraine conflict, Israel’s war in Gaza and the civil war in Sudan.

The number of interstate conflicts doubled from the previous year to a record eight in 2025, including clashes between India and Pakistan, Afghanistan and Pakistan, as well as Cambodia and Thailand.

PRIO said the 65 conflicts recorded were spread across 35 countries, with several states involved in multiple wars simultaneously. Israel, for example, was embroiled in conflicts linked to Gaza, Syria, Lebanon, Iran and Yemen, while Myanmar, Pakistan, and Nigeria also faced more than one armed conflict.

Africa was the region most affected by state-based violence, followed by Asia, the Middle East, the Americas, and Europe. According to PRIO, more than 930,000 people have been killed in state-based conflicts since 2021 – roughly matching the total recorded during the previous two decades.