Asia, which accounts for 60% of the global population, recorded the lowest rate of homicide in 2017 with only 2.3 killings per 1,00,000 people while the Americas had the highest homicide rate, according to a UN report.
The Global Study on Homicide 2019 published on Monday by the UN Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) said that about 4,64,000 people across the world were victims of homicidal violence in 2017, an increase from 395,542 in 1992. The number of homicides in 2017 far surpassed the 89,000 killed in armed conflicts in the same period.
The global homicide rate, measured as the victims of homicide per 1,00,000 people, declined from 7.2 in 1992, to 6.1 in 2017, it said.
The lowest regional rate of homicide in 2017 was reported in Asia, with 104,000 victims representing a rate of 2.3 per 100,000 population. Asia accounted for 23% of total homicide victims worldwide.
“The study seeks to shed light on gender-related killings, lethal gang violence and other challenges, to support prevention and interventions to bring down homicide rates,” said UNODC Executive Director Yury Fedotov.
