Seventy-seven countries experienced at least one death from terrorism last year, a new report has revealed. Total fatalities for 2016, however, fell for the second year in a row.

The 2017 Global Terrorism Index, published today by the Institute for Economics and Peace, offers a guide to the countries hit hardest by terrorism – and most at risk from a future attack. Iraq, which was the location of seven of the 10 deadliest attacks in 2016, tops the ranking. It received a score of 10, where zero represents no impact from terrorism and 10 represents the highest measurable impact.

Iraq is followed by Afghanistan, Nigeria, Syria, Pakistan, Yemen and Somalia – none of which are on the radar of most ordinary travellers.

Several popular holiday destinations, however, do make the top 20, including Turkey, Thailand, Egypt, India and Philippines.

The 20 countries impacted most by terrorism

Iraq - Global Terrorism Index score: 10 Afghanistan - 9.441 Nigeria - 9.009 Syria - 8.621 Pakistan - 8.4 Yemen - 7.877 Somalia - 7.654 India - 7.534 Turkey - 7.519 Libya - 7.256 Egypt - 7.17 Philippines - 7.126 Democratic Republic of the Congo - 6.967 South Sudan - 6.821 Cameroon - 6.787 Thailand - 6.609 Ukraine - 6.557 Sudan - 6.453 Central African Republic - 6.394 Niger - 6.316

After Turkey and Ukraine, France is the European country deemed most at risk, coming 23rd overall with a score of 5.964, followed by the UK at 35th overall (5.102), Germany at 38th (4.917), Belgium at 40th (4.656) and Greece at 46th (4.139).

A service to remember those killed in the Nice terror attack Credit: EPA/IAN LANGSDON

The 10 European countries impacted most by terrorism

Turkey - Global Terrorism Index score: 7.519 Ukraine - 6.557 France - 5.964 UK - 5.102 Germany - 4.917 Belgium - 4.656 Greece - 4.139 Sweden - 3.756 Ireland - 3.141 Italy - 2.75

"The main positive finding shows a global decline in the number of deaths from terrorist attacks to 25,673 people, which is a 22 per cent improvement from the peak in 2014," says the report. "However, while the global numbers of deaths and attacks improved in 2016, other trends are disturbing. More countries experienced at least one death from terrorism. This is more than at any time in the past 17 years and reflects an increase from 65 countries in 2015 to 77 in 2016.

Two out of every three countries to feature in the report - or 106 nations - experienced at least one act of terrorism, while 77 witnessed a fatal attack.

Two-thirds of nations to feature witnessed at least one terror attack in 2016 Credit: Shchipkova Elena - Fotolia

"When examining the drivers of terrorism the presence of armed conflict, political violence by governments, political exclusion and group grievances remain critical factors," the report adds. "The great majority of terrorism is used as a tactic within an armed conflict or against repressive political regimes. It also demonstrates the risks of political crackdowns and counterterrorism actions that can exacerbate existing grievances and the drivers of extremism and terrorism. Both Egypt and Turkey recorded substantially higher levels of terrorism following government crackdowns."

A total of 30 countries were given a score of "0", representing no impact from terrorism and a low likelihood of future attacks. It should be noted that numerous countries, including Suriname, Belize, and many Pacific island nations, do not appear in the study.

Costa Rica is one of 30 countries deemed to be unaffected by terrorism Credit: ©wollertz - stock.adobe.com

The 30 countries unaffected by terrorism

Benin Botswana Costa Rica Cuba Eritrea Gabon The Gambia Equatorial Guinea Lithuania Latvia Mongolia Mauritania Mauritius Malawi Namibia Norway Oman Papua New Guinea North Korea Portugal Romania Singapore El Salvador Slovenia Swaziland Togo Turkmenistan Timor-Leste Vietnam Zambia

The worst attack in 2016 came on December 10, when suicide bombers attacked Palmyra, killing at least 421 people. A further 12 hostages were taken and killed in January 2017.

The truck attack in Nice, in which 87 were killed, was the 17th deadliest attack.

Follow this link to read the report in full.