V. Casualty recording in armed conflict: methods and normative issues

Chapter:

6. Armed conflict data trends

Source:

SIPRI Yearbook 2016

Author(s):

Ian Davis

Press and media coverage of any war almost always reports the number killed as soon as a figure is obtainable. Although accounting for their own military deaths has been a long-standing practice of states, until recently close attention to civilian deaths, on all sides of a conflict, has been either rare or inconsistent. As the nature of conflict has evolved since the end of the 20th century from predominantly international conflicts to intrastate conflicts, this has repeatedly been said to coincide with an increasingly disproportionate toll on the civilian populations involved. The true extent of this problem, however, is not known.² Nonetheless, the international community has emphasized the importance of the protection of civilians as a central tenet of both military and peacekeeping operations.³ Detailed information on civilian deaths is a prerequisite for ensuring that such protection is provided.