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C1

Conflict and political violence

The first of four kinds of harm. Every organised violent event recorded since 1989 by the Uppsala Conflict Data Program (UCDP), loaded one event at a time with its own death count, its own low and high estimates, and how precisely its location is known.

War deaths are counted as they were recorded, event by event — not estimated from a cause — because a death in battle is seen and recorded. Nobody records the WOUNDED event by event, so the number of injured is estimated from the number of deaths, using a ratio of wounded to dead from published research, with a range of five times between its low and high ends. It is always graded LOW.

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The products this kind of harm reaches

Each product whose figure includes Conflict and political violence, with its deaths per item and the part of that figure this kind of harm accounts for.

Scenario Economic-embedded, using FIGARO 2023.

The products this kind of harm reaches
ProductDeaths per item
Bag of charcoal
Part from here: 100%
1.5 × 10⁻⁷ per item(0.61–3.5 × 10⁻⁷)LOWS-MAX · run 2259 · methodology v1.0 · data dv-20261007-44r
Cocoa butter
Part from here: 99%
4.1 × 10⁻⁸ per item(0.16–1.1 × 10⁻⁷)LOWS-MAX · run 2259 · methodology v1.0 · data dv-20261007-44r
Cocoa mass
Part from here: 99%
4.1 × 10⁻⁸ per item(0.16–1.0 × 10⁻⁷)LOWS-MAX · run 2259 · methodology v1.0 · data dv-20261007-44r
Printed circuit board assembly
Part from here: 98%
1.6 × 10⁻⁶ per item(0.60–3.4 × 10⁻⁶)LOWS-MAX · run 2259 · methodology v1.0 · data dv-20261007-44r
Smartphone
Part from here: 98%
3.0 × 10⁻⁸ per item(1.2–6.3 × 10⁻⁸)LOWS-MAX · run 2259 · methodology v1.0 · data dv-20261007-44r
Laptop
Part from here: 98%
5.4 × 10⁻⁷ per item(0.21–1.2 × 10⁻⁶)LOWS-MAX · run 2259 · methodology v1.0 · data dv-20261007-44r
Copper
Part from here: 98%
2.0 × 10⁻⁷ per item(0.81–4.2 × 10⁻⁷)LOWS-MAX · run 2259 · methodology v1.0 · data dv-20261007-44r
Diamond ring
Part from here: 98%
9.2 × 10⁻⁶ per item(0.44–2.0 × 10⁻⁵)LOWS-MAX · run 2259 · methodology v1.0 · data dv-20261007-44r
Chocolate bar
Part from here: 98%
2.5 × 10⁻⁹ per item(1.2–5.8 × 10⁻⁹)LOWS-MAX · run 2259 · methodology v1.0 · data dv-20261007-44r
Petrol car
Part from here: 97%
9.5 × 10⁻⁶ per item(0.55–1.7 × 10⁻⁵)LOWS-MAX · run 2259 · methodology v1.0 · data dv-20261007-44r
Coffee, one cup
Part from here: 96%
4.7 × 10⁻¹⁰ per item(0.19–1.2 × 10⁻⁹)LOWS-MAX · run 2259 · methodology v1.0 · data dv-20261007-44r
Roasted coffee
Part from here: 96%
6.7 × 10⁻⁸ per item(0.27–1.7 × 10⁻⁷)LOWS-MAX · run 2259 · methodology v1.0 · data dv-20261007-44r
Passenger car tyre
Part from here: 95%
5.2 × 10⁻¹⁰ per item(0.27–1.1 × 10⁻⁹)LOWS-MAX · run 2259 · methodology v1.0 · data dv-20261007-44r
Steel
Part from here: 95%
3.1 × 10⁻⁹ per item(1.7–6.7 × 10⁻⁹)LOWS-MAX · run 2259 · methodology v1.0 · data dv-20261007-44r
Electric car
Part from here: 94%
3.0 × 10⁻⁵ per item(1.8–5.5 × 10⁻⁵)LOWS-MAX · run 2259 · methodology v1.0 · data dv-20261007-44r
Lithium-ion cell
Part from here: 93%
8.4 × 10⁻⁸ per item(0.50–1.7 × 10⁻⁷)LOWS-MAX · run 2259 · methodology v1.0 · data dv-20261007-44r
Lithium-ion battery pack
Part from here: 93%
6.9 × 10⁻⁸ per item(0.36–1.4 × 10⁻⁷)LOWS-MAX · run 2259 · methodology v1.0 · data dv-20261007-44r
NMC cathode powder
Part from here: 93%
1.4 × 10⁻⁷ per item(0.71–3.2 × 10⁻⁷)LOWS-MAX · run 2259 · methodology v1.0 · data dv-20261007-44r
Cotton fabric
Part from here: 91%
3.9 × 10⁻⁸ per item(1.5–9.5 × 10⁻⁸)LOWS-MAX · run 2259 · methodology v1.0 · data dv-20261007-44r
Cotton T-shirt
Part from here: 91%
6.4 × 10⁻⁹ per item(0.25–1.6 × 10⁻⁸)LOWS-MAX · run 2259 · methodology v1.0 · data dv-20261007-44r
Cotton yarn
Part from here: 91%
3.8 × 10⁻⁸ per item(1.5–9.3 × 10⁻⁸)LOWS-MAX · run 2259 · methodology v1.0 · data dv-20261007-44r
Jeans
Part from here: 91%
3.2 × 10⁻⁸ per item(1.2–8.0 × 10⁻⁸)LOWS-MAX · run 2259 · methodology v1.0 · data dv-20261007-44r
Denim fabric
Part from here: 91%
3.8 × 10⁻⁸ per item(1.5–9.8 × 10⁻⁸)LOWS-MAX · run 2259 · methodology v1.0 · data dv-20261007-44r
Refined sugar
Part from here: 90%
6.1 × 10⁻⁹ per item(0.24–1.5 × 10⁻⁸)LOWS-MAX · run 2259 · methodology v1.0 · data dv-20261007-44r
Wheat flour
Part from here: 89%
1.1 × 10⁻⁸ per item(0.44–2.6 × 10⁻⁸)LOWS-MAX · run 2259 · methodology v1.0 · data dv-20261007-44r
Croissant
Part from here: 89%
0.42–2.4 × 10⁻⁸ per itemINDICATIVES-MAX · run 2259 · methodology v1.0 · data dv-20261007-44r
Butter
Part from here: 89%
3.2 × 10⁻⁷ per item(1.3–7.2 × 10⁻⁷)LOWS-MAX · run 2259 · methodology v1.0 · data dv-20261007-44r
Pack of cigarettes
Part from here: 80%
3.6 × 10⁻¹⁰ per item(1.4–8.8 × 10⁻¹⁰)LOWS-MAX · run 2259 · methodology v1.0 · data dv-20261007-44r
Aluminium
Part from here: 54%
4.8 × 10⁻¹⁰ per item(0.19–1.2 × 10⁻⁹)LOWS-MAX · run 2259 · methodology v1.0 · data dv-20261007-44r
Glass
Part from here: 9.5%
2.2 × 10⁻¹⁰ per item(0.93–4.5 × 10⁻¹⁰)LOWS-MAX · run 2259 · methodology v1.0 · data dv-20261007-44r

The figure is the product’s own, with its range. The share beside it is a middle estimate only: the calculation stores a range for each figure, not for each part of one.

What this kind of harm counts

This covers organised violence: fighting between governments and armed groups, fighting between armed groups, and the deliberate killing of civilians by an organised group. It is the one kind of harm that is directly seen, so nothing has to be estimated from a cause — there is only something to count.

What still has to be argued is which economic activity a death is linked to, and that happens later, in a separate step. Nothing on this page has been linked to anything.

Counted directly from war records: each death was seen and recorded, so nothing is estimated from a cause. Deaths outside organised violence are not counted here.

What the records hold today

417,968

Events in the records

4,257,891

Deaths recorded by the source

126

Countries

1,581

Wars

1989–2025

Years covered

These figures are the publisher’s own, shown with the credit its licence asks for. Nothing on this page has been linked to a product, a company or a material.

Confidence of the death records
Confidence of the death recordsRecords
HIGH324,334
MEDIUM60,856
INDICATIVE32,778

The causes it includes

The causes it includes
Cause Estimated from its cause Records
State-based armed conflict
C1-STATE
no 292,121
One-sided violence against civilians
C1-ONESIDED
no 64,396
Non-state conflict
C1-NONSTATE
no 61,451
Indirect conflict deaths
C1-INDIRECT
yes not counted here

Where the injury figure comes from

UCDP publishes no count of the injured. It records deaths for each event and stops there, and no other source fills the gap event by event. Since injuries are one of the two headline measures of this project, there were two honest options: estimate them from a published ratio with a wide range, or publish nothing.

This is the first option, done in the open. Deaths are multiplied by a ratio of wounded to killed. The low estimate of deaths is multiplied by the low end of the ratio (and the high by the high), so the two uncertainties add up rather than cancel out. Every estimated record is graded LOW.

Where the injury figure comes from
Type of violence Injured per death Grade
state-based 2–10 (3) LOW
non-state 2–10 (3) LOW
one-sided 2–10 (3) LOW

The same ratio is used for all three types of violence. No separate figure for each type was found in published research, and there is good reason to think attacks on civilians leave fewer wounded per death than battles do — they are meant to kill. Inventing three numbers from one source would be false precision, so the gap is recorded instead.

Source: Fazal, Tanisha M. (2014), "Dead Wrong? Battle Deaths, Military Medicine, and Exaggerated Reports of War's Demise", International Security (Summer 2014), summarised in Belfer Center, "Nonfatal Casualties and the Changing Costs of War"; and Khorram-Manesh, A., Burkle, F.M., Goniewicz, K. & Robinson, Y. (2021), "Estimating the Number of Civilian Casualties in Modern Armed Conflicts - A Systematic Review", Frontiers in Public Health 9:765261. · doi:10.3389/fpubh.2021.765261

Which sectors carry this harm

Which industries this kind of harm is linked to, weighted by how much harm lies behind each share rather than averaged over countries.

56.9% of the deaths recorded for this kind of harm belong to a subject that has been attributed at all — that is, to a war or a report that has been linked to industries — 22 of 1,581.

Other and unattributed economic activity — 18.7%Crop and animal production, hunting and related service activities — 12.5%Extraction of crude petroleum and natural gas — 5.6%Mining of metal ores — 5.3%Transportation and storage — 5.3%Defence activities — 2.1%Wholesale and retail trade; repair of motor vehicles and motorcycles — 1.7%Other mining and quarrying — 1.5%Mining of coal and lignite — 1.3%Manufacture of weapons and ammunition — 1.2%Manufacture of basic metals — 0.9%Manufacture of coke and refined petroleum products — 0.5%
Which sectors carry this harm
sector share Grade
Other and unattributed economic activity
OTHER
18.7% MEDIUM
Crop and animal production, hunting and related service activities
01
12.5% MEDIUM
Extraction of crude petroleum and natural gas
06
5.6% MEDIUM
Mining of metal ores
07
5.3% HIGH
Transportation and storage
H
5.3% MEDIUM
Defence activities
8422
2.1% MEDIUM
Wholesale and retail trade; repair of motor vehicles and motorcycles
G
1.7% HIGH
Other mining and quarrying
08
1.5% MEDIUM
Mining of coal and lignite
05
1.3% MEDIUM
Manufacture of weapons and ammunition
252
1.2% MEDIUM
Manufacture of basic metals
24
0.9% MEDIUM
Manufacture of coke and refined petroleum products
19
0.5% MEDIUM

These are shares, not counts of people. The number of deaths each industry stands for is calculated but not published: it has no range yet and has not passed the test on past years.

Conflict attribution is SCORED: each war’s link to each industry is scored against nine criteria, using a published guide and a source for every score, for twelve wars chosen to cover the range of the argument. The remaining shares belong to wars nobody has scored yet, and they are missing, not zero.

What it does not capture

Sources and credit

Sources and credit
Version of the data Downloaded File fingerprint (SHA-256)
ucdp · ged-v26.1 2026-09-10 8c941d84954e555e…

Sources →

Questions

Are these HumanToll’s numbers?

No. The death counts on this page are UCDP’s, shown with the credit its licence asks for and with the exact version of the data file they came from. HumanToll’s own figures — harm linked to products and materials — are not published yet.

Why is there no total for the injured on this page?

Because it would be an estimate made by the model, and no such estimate is published until the model has passed its test on past years. The method, the ratio, its range and its source are all here; the number is not.

What happens when UCDP corrects a year?

The correction arrives as a new version of the data file. The old records are kept and marked as replaced, not deleted, so anything published from the old version can still be traced to the events it came from.

Does a war death mean some business is to blame for it?

Not by itself, and this page makes no such claim. It records that the death happened, where, and how certain the record is. Whether any economic activity is linked to it is a separate step that needs evidence, and the assumptions behind it can be switched on the scenarios page.

Methodology →