Afghanistan vs Iraq: Number of terrorist attacks
Afghanistan
1,453 attacks
in 2021
Iraq
547 attacks
in 2021
Afghanistan rank
1st
Iraq rank
2nd
Number of terrorist attacks over time
- Afghanistan
- Iraq
How they compare
Afghanistan currently reports 1,453 attacks against 547 attacks in Iraq, a difference of 906 attacks.
That makes Afghanistan's figure about 2.7 times Iraq's.
The two have swapped places 11 times across 51 shared years of data; in 1970 it was Iraq ahead.
Afghanistan ranks 1st and Iraq ranks 2nd of 188 countries.
Across the 6 decades both report, Afghanistan averaged higher in 1 and Iraq in 5.
Head to head by decade
| Decade | Afghanistan | Iraq | Difference | Ahead |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 0.4 attacks | 0.6 attacks | 0.2 attacks | Iraq |
| 1980s | 2.2 attacks | 3 attacks | 0.8 attacks | Iraq |
| 1990s | 10.89 attacks | 13.89 attacks | 3 attacks | Iraq |
| 2000s | 195.1 attacks | 518.6 attacks | 323.5 attacks | Iraq |
| 2010s | 1,424 attacks | 2,141 attacks | 716.9 attacks | Iraq |
| 2020s | 2,028 attacks | 655.5 attacks | 1,373 attacks | Afghanistan |
Averages of every year both report within each decade.
Frequently asked questions
- Which has higher number of terrorist attacks, Afghanistan or Iraq?
- Afghanistan, at 1,453 attacks against 547 attacks in Iraq as of 2021.
- What is the difference in number of terrorist attacks between Afghanistan and Iraq?
- 906 attacks, with Afghanistan ahead.
- How many years of comparable data are there for Afghanistan and Iraq?
- 51 years are reported by both, from 1970 to 2021.
- How do Afghanistan and Iraq rank globally for number of terrorist attacks?
- Afghanistan ranks 1st and Iraq ranks 2nd of 188 countries.
- Where does this data come from?
- National Consortium for the Study of Terrorism and Responses to Terrorism (START) (2022) – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as Number of terrorist attacks. Statizoid refreshes it automatically from the source and publishes the full history for both places.
Individual pages
About this data
Total number of terrorist attacks.