What is the Global Armed Conflicts Map?
The Global Armed Conflicts Map is a free, open intelligence dashboard that tracks 29 active armed conflict theaters worldwide on a single interactive map, with a plain-language intelligence briefing for each. It exists to bridge the gap between dense academic conflict datasets and digestible, at-a-glance situational awareness.
Every theater is profiled with the same structure: key actors, conflict type, current status, intensity classification, geography, what is at stake, a timeline, and source attribution. This consistency makes conflicts comparable side by side.
Where does the data come from?
We aggregate four primary, widely cited sources rather than collecting raw events ourselves:
- ACLED (Armed Conflict Location & Event Data Project) — event-based, near real-time geolocated records of political violence. The unit is the individual event; there is no fatality threshold.
- UCDP (Uppsala Conflict Data Program) — conflict-centric and historical. The unit is the conflict dyad, with a threshold of ≥25 battle-related deaths per year and annual updates.
- CFR Global Conflict Tracker (Council on Foreign Relations) — strategic, qualitative briefings on status and impact.
- Google News — aggregated headlines from global news outlets, which feed the automatically updated "Latest developments" on each theater page.
For a full side-by-side comparison of how the three core datasets differ in unit, threshold, update cadence and intended use, see ACLED vs UCDP vs CFR.
How we organize conflicts: the "theater" unit
The dashboard's organizing unit is the conflict theater — a coherent war or crisis (such as the Russia–Ukraine war or the Sahel insurgency) — rather than the individual event (ACLED) or the academic dyad (UCDP). This is a deliberate editorial choice: it is how journalists, analysts and the public actually think about wars, and it lets a transnational conflict like the Sahel insurgency be presented as one theater instead of three national datasets.
How are status and intensity classified?
Status (Active, Tensions, Frozen) and intensity (High, Medium, Low/Elevated) are display classifications, not source-reported fields. They are editorial summaries based on the underlying sources, intended for orientation. A standoff such as the Taiwan Strait is labelled "Tensions" precisely because battle-death datasets record little there — open war has not occurred — even though strategic risk is high.
How often is it updated?
The "Latest developments" section on each theater page is refreshed automatically every few hours from Google News, and each page's dateModified updates with it. The structured profiles (actors, timelines, stakes) are evergreen and reviewed periodically. Casualty figures everywhere on the site are estimates drawn from contested reporting, not confirmed counts.
Limitations and caveats
- Estimates, not ground truth. Fatality and displacement figures are approximate and often contested between sources.
- Reporting gaps. Conflicts such as Sudan and Myanmar are systematically underreported due to access and communications blackouts, so figures likely understate the true toll.
- Secondary aggregation. We are not a primary data collector; always cite the underlying sources (ACLED, UCDP, CFR) for high-stakes work.
- Editorial classifications. Status and intensity labels are our summaries, not official designations.
How to cite this dashboard
When referencing figures, please attribute the underlying sources directly. To cite the dashboard itself: "Global Armed Conflicts Map, armedconflicts.org (accessed [date])." We welcome use by journalists, researchers, educators and analysts — see who the map is for.
Frequently asked questions
Where does the Global Armed Conflicts Map get its data?
It aggregates four widely cited sources: ACLED (event data), UCDP (academic conflict data), the CFR Global Conflict Tracker (strategic briefings), and Google News (news aggregation, used for the auto-updated headlines). It is a secondary aggregation, not a primary data collector.
How are conflict status and intensity decided?
Status (Active, Tensions, Frozen) and intensity (High, Medium, Low) are editorial display classifications summarizing the underlying sources — not official or source-reported fields. They are intended for at-a-glance orientation.
How current is the data?
Each theater page's 'Latest developments' headlines refresh automatically every few hours from Google News, and the page's modified date updates with them. The structured profiles are evergreen and reviewed periodically.
Are the casualty figures accurate?
All casualty and displacement figures on the site are estimates drawn from contested reporting, not confirmed counts. Some conflicts are systematically underreported. Always verify with primary sources for high-stakes use.
Can I cite or reuse this data?
Yes. Please attribute the underlying sources (ACLED, UCDP, CFR) for specific figures, and cite the dashboard as 'Global Armed Conflicts Map, armedconflicts.org' for the aggregated view.