Violence, political instability and deep-rooted conflicts continue to shape the lives of millions across the globe, according to the latest Global Peace Index (GPI). From long-running wars to sudden insurgencies, there are countries where safety is a daily struggle and life can change in an instant.

The 2025 Global Peace Index ranks nations based on conflict, safety, and militarisation – and the results are alarming. At the top of the list are countries where civil war, political unrest and armed violence dominate everyday life. Russia, currently embroiled in its ongoing conflict with Ukraine, tops the list. Europe’s only country on the list, Ukraine, follows closely behind in second, with millions displaced and cities under threat. Yet, one continent in particular claims the title of having the most countries on the list. While most would assume that Africa – a mainland plagued by armed conflict, terrorism, corrupt governments and humanitarian crises – would be the continent that would top the list, this is not the case.

In reality, Asia stands as the continent with the most countries in the GPI list for 2025, with an incredible nine countries. Africa follows just behind with eight, while Europe has one. Two countries, Russia and Turkey, can be classified as transcontinental.

In Africa, Sudan, South Sudan, Mali, Burkina Faso, Somalia, the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), the Central African Republic (CAR) and Nigeria all face extreme levels of violence, often from armed groups or ongoing civil wars. For example, Sudan, with a GPI score of 3.323 and third place on the list, has been suffering a catastrophic civil war since April 2023, with no signs of abating in 2025. Fierce fighting between the Sudanese armed forces (SAF) and the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) has torn the country apart, with UN officials labelling the war as the world’s largest and most devastating humanitarian crisis.

The nine Asian countries to feature on the list are: Yemen, Afghanistan, Syria, Israel, Myanmar, North Korea, Iraq, Palestine and Pakistan. While Afghanistan’s war officially ended in 2021 with the Taliban takeover, the country remains extremely volatile and unsafe. Afghanistan – which takes sixth place on the list – is the only country in the world where girls and women are banned from secondary and higher education and face severe restrictions on movement and work. Militant violence also continues.

In ninth place is Israel, whose GPI score has deteriorated significantly due to the outbreak of war with Hamas in late 2023. While in 2025 Israel has started to recover from the war, it remains on high alert. Tensions with neighbouring countries and armed groups (like Hezbollah in Lebanon and militants in Syria) remain high.

North Korea takes 15th place on the list. Despite not being an active warzone, it remains one of the most dangerous countries due to its extreme militarisation and isolation. The totalitarian regime in Pyongyang maintains a massive military and nuclear weapons programme, while it also continues to hold an iron grip on its people, resulting in worrying human rights abuses. Chronic economic sanctions and self-imposed isolation have also led to food shortages. 

Finally, Pakistan rounds off the list in 20th place. The Asian country slid into a new era of terrorism in the last year, as militant violence resurged across the country. The Pakistani Taliban (TTP) insurgency, which had been subdued in the late 2010s, is now back with a vengeance, particularly in the northwest regions like Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. The number of militant attacks rose about 70% in 2024 compared to 2023, with terrorists frequently targeting police stations, army posts and mosques.