Attacks on healthcare - Statistics and Facts

The targeting of healthcare structures has become part of the strategy and tactics of modern warfare. From 2015 to 2022, over three thousand attacks against healthcare were registered around the world. According to the World Health Organization, attacks on healthcare relate to any act of verbal or physical violence, or obstruction, or threat of violence that interferes with the availability, access, and delivery of curative and/or preventive health services during emergencies.

Where are attacks on healthcare happening?

According to the surveillance system for attacks on health care (SSA), in the first four months of 2022, there were 225 registered attacks targeting healthcare. The highest annual number of attacks against healthcare across the globe was, however, recorded in 2019. Since 2015, according to the number of reported attacks against healthcare per country or territory, most attacks on healthcare took place in the occupied Palestinian territories, followed by the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Recent attacks on healthcare have notably been reported in Ukraine amid the Russia-Ukraine war.

What is the most common type of attack?

The nature and type of attacks vary across contexts and can range from violence with heavy weapons to psychological threats or intimidation. These attacks target healthcare availability, access, and delivery. During this period, most of these attacks impacted healthcare facilities and personnel. According to the most common type of impact against healthcare, hospitals, medical transport, and supply stores are especially targeted. As of April 2022, most of these attacks were classed as involving individual weapons or heavy weapons. The third most registered type of attack on healthcare was psychological violence.
This text provides general information. Statista assumes no liability for the information given being complete or correct. Due to varying update cycles, statistics can display more up-to-date data than referenced in the text.
Published by Statista Research Department, Dec 7, 2023

Key insights

Number of healthcare attacks since 2015
4.7k
Country/Territory with most healthcare attacks
Occupied Palestinian territories
Most frequent target of healthcare attacks
Personnel
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