A new, heartbreaking report from the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights has found that in 2014 alone, 76,021 people were killed in the Syrian civil war. That’s the highest number of deaths since the conflict began four years ago. Of those killed in civil war, 17,790 were civilians and 3,501 were children.
Iraq also had its deadliest year since 2007, with more than 15,000 killed. The rise of ISIS—as well as the airstrikes and fighting to combat the Islamic militant group—is responsible for much of the uptick in violence. The unrelenting war in Syria has caused a massive humanitarian refugee crisis, where families have been forced to flee the conflict: Almost half of the country’s entire population is now displaced.
