Israel ranked 14 in terror index, risk considered 'extreme'

Maplecroft list assessing frequency of terrorist incidents, attacks puts Somalia top of list, ahead of Iraq; risk in Yemen increased.

By YONI COHEN
bulldozer pigua 224 88 (photo credit: Ariel Jerozolimski)
bulldozer pigua 224 88
(photo credit: Ariel Jerozolimski)
Israel was ranked 14th on an international list that assesses the frequency and intensity of terrorist incidents and was categorized as one of sixteen countries that have an "extreme risk."
The ranking in the 2010 edition of the Maplecroft report, released Monday morning, sees Israel moving up three places from its 2009 ranking of 17.
RELATED:Analysis: Al-Qaida ideologue’s arrest blow to ME jihadisSomalia: Bomber attacks hotel, 32 dead
Somalia is considered to have a greater risk of being attacked by terrorists than Iraq, Pakistan, Afghanistan and Columbia, according to the report.
The report sees Iraq moving down to third place on the list and the Palestinian Authority placed fifth in the Terrorism Risk Index (TRI) list of 196 countries.
The index, which used data from June 2009 to June 2010 to assess the frequency of terrorist incidents and the intensity of attacks, considered Russia, Greece and Yemen to be countries where terrorism is on the rise.
The Maplecroft report said that Somalia experienced 556 terrorist incidents, which killed a total of 1,437 people and wounded 3,408 between June 2009 and June 2010, the highest number of deaths from terrorism per population in any of the countries on the list.
Yemen for the first time entered the top 16 countries considered an "extreme risk." The country has seen a very significant increase in the number of terrorist incidents on its own soil, the report states, and al-Qaida is considered the primary source of terrorism in the country.
The report also highlights that al-Qaida was behind the printer cartridge bombs hidden on cargo planes en route to the US from Yemen in October.
Greece is the country that has seen the biggest change in number of terror attacks, moving from 57th to 24th place on the list. It is now considered by the report to be the European country most at risk of terrorist attacks.
Between June 2009 and June 2010, the country experienced 180 attacks – more than Yemen.
Although none of the major Western powers fall under the high or "extreme risk" categories, the US came in at number 33 with a "medium risk" or terrorist attacks.
France came in at 44 and the United Kingdom came in at 46 on the list, with both countries also considered at "medium risk."
Canada and Germany both came in much lower on the list and were rated as "low risk."