As deadly as war and as powerful as governments, global organized crime remains in the shadows

When people think of the world’s deadliest threats, armed conflicts usually come to mind first. Yet every year, organized crime quietly claims a comparable number of lives.

When people think of the world’s deadliest threats, armed conflicts usually come to mind first. Yet every year, organized crime quietly claims a comparable number of lives.

Since 2000, the UN estimates that organized criminal groups have been linked to about 95,000 homicides annually. That figure is strikingly close to the average annual death toll from armed conflicts worldwide, estimated at around 92,000 people. 

The comparison raises an obvious question: if organized crime kills as many people as war, why does it receive far less international attention?

As UN Secretary-General António Guterres has warned, “The activities of transnational organized crime take many forms, but the ramifications are the same: weakened governance, corruption and lawlessness, open violence, death and destruction.”

Yet beyond these global patterns lies a reality that is often far less visible: The human lives shaped by these networks, and whose experiences rarely appear in headlines or statistics.

At 17, Mary left Benin City, Nigeria, believing she was traveling to Europe for a restaurant job and a better future. After transiting through Libya, it became clear that she had been drawn into a trafficking operation. 

She was subjected to coercion, sexual violence, and exploitation, and found herself unable to contact her family or escape the conditions imposed on her. 

Looking back on her experience, Mary described the long-term psychological impact.: “What I’m passing through right now is so big, so serious, I see myself as a grown-up. I missed ever being a child.” 

Yet amid the trauma, she also expressed a fragile sense of possibility, saying, “One day I will have my documents, I will have an education, I will have work.”

Her words reflect a broader reality in which survivors often carry both deep trauma and uncertain hope.