Homicides (UN, World) in Afghanistan
Afghanistan: Homicides (UN, World) was 1,613 homicides in 2021. ▲ Rising
Homicides in Afghanistan, 2009–2021
Source: UN, World Population Prospects (2024); United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (2025) – with minor processing by Our World in Data. Measured in homicides.
Analysis
In 2021, homicides in Afghanistan stood at 1,613 homicides.
The figure is down 37.2% on the previous year and up 31.0% over ten years.
Over the whole period, homicides in Afghanistan peaked at 3,367 homicides in 2015 and was at its lowest, 983 homicides, in 2010.
Afghanistan ranks 28th of 179 countries on this measure, in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 11 years of available data.
Homicides (UN, World) in Afghanistan, year by year
| Year | homicides | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2009 | 1,115 homicides | — |
| 2010 | 983 homicides | -11.8% |
| 2011 | 1,231 homicides | +25.2% |
| 2012 | 1,948 homicides | +58.2% |
| 2015 | 3,367 homicides | +72.8% |
| 2016 | 2,318 homicides | -31.2% |
| 2017 | 2,424 homicides | +4.6% |
| 2018 | 2,474 homicides | +2.1% |
| 2019 | 2,712 homicides | +9.6% |
| 2020 | 2,570 homicides | -5.2% |
| 2021 | 1,613 homicides | -37.2% |
Afghanistan compared with similar countries
- Afghanistan's 1,613 homicides is above the median for low income countries, which is 553.5 homicides, 2.9× the median. (10 countries reporting)
- Afghanistan's 1,613 homicides is above the median for Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan, which is 216.5 homicides, 7.5× the median. (20 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 1,115 homicides | 1,115 homicides | 1,115 homicides | 1 |
| 2010s | 2,182 homicides | 983 homicides | 3,367 homicides | 8 |
| 2020s | 2,092 homicides | 1,613 homicides | 2,570 homicides | 2 |
Countries ranked near Afghanistan
More social development data for Afghanistan
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 20,869 (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 2.67 million (2025)
- Political Rights Rating 7 (2025)
- Electoral democracy 0 (2025)
- Political rights rating fh, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Political rights rating fh, gaps filled 7 (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 0.0609 units per person (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 2.67 million (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 0.0005 units per person (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 0 units per US$ of GDP (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is homicides in Afghanistan?
- Homicides in Afghanistan was 1,613 homicides in 2021, according to UN, World Population Prospects (2024); United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (2025) – with minor processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest homicides recorded in Afghanistan?
- The highest recorded value was 3,367 homicides in 2015.
- What is the lowest homicides recorded in Afghanistan?
- The lowest recorded value was 983 homicides in 2010.
- How does Afghanistan rank for homicides?
- Afghanistan ranks 28th out of 179 countries with data for 2021.
- Is homicides rising or falling in Afghanistan?
- Over the last ten years it is up 31.0%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Afghanistan data come from?
- The figures come from UN, World Population Prospects (2024); United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (2025) – with minor processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Homicides. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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CSV · JSON — 11 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Number of intentional homicides.