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Global Terrorism Database (GTD)

The GTD provides the most comprehensive global database of terrorist incidents with over 200,000 attacks from 1970-2020.

Format CSV / Shapefile
Coverage Global
Resolution Incident-level point data
License Free for academic and research use
Update Periodic releases

Format

CSV / Shapefile

Geometry

Point (terrorism incidents)

Coverage

Global

Resolution

Incident-level point data

About this dataset

University of Maryland's comprehensive database of over 200,000 terrorist incidents worldwide from 1970-2020.

The Global Terrorism Database (GTD) from the University of Maryland's START consortium is the most comprehensive unclassified database of terrorist attacks globally. It contains over 200,000 incidents from 1970-2020, with details on date, location, attack type, weapons used, target type, perpetrator group, number of casualties, and property damage.

Terrorism analysis Security risk assessment Counter-terrorism planning Conflict research

How to download

  1. 1 Register for a free GTD account.
  2. 2 Download the full dataset or country subset.
  3. 3 Convert to CSV import for GIS.
  4. 4 Open in QGIS and filter by year, attack type, or region.

FAQ

How are terrorist incidents defined in the GTD?

The GTD defines a terrorist incident as an intentional act of violence or threat by a non-state actor to achieve political, economic, religious, or social goals.

What information is recorded for each incident?

Each incident includes 120+ variables including date, location (city, coordinates), attack type, target type, weapon type, perpetrator group, casualties, and property damage.