Libya has recorded the biggest improvement in the world on the 2025 Global Peace Index, jumping 25 places to rank 131st, with a peace score of 2.4 points. This is the country’s best ranking since 2020, even though it remains classified as a nation affected by prolonged conflict.
The report, released by the Institute for Economics and Peace, highlights that the improvement was largely due to a significant reduction in active conflict over recent years. The drop in open violence across the country has led to fewer deaths and a slight return to normalcy in many areas.
However, the report also warned that the current calm may be deceptive, as Libya still faces serious internal challenges that threaten any long-term peace. These include the existence of rival governments, ongoing foreign involvement, and fragile institutions that have failed to function effectively since the fall of former leader Muammar Gaddafi in 2011.
Despite the progress, experts say Libya’s path to sustainable peace remains uncertain, especially because of divided political leadership and a military landscape controlled by various armed groups. The report notes that while full-scale war has reduced, the country remains highly fragile and susceptible to future conflict if its deep-rooted political and social problems are not addressed.
For over a decade, Libya has struggled to maintain national unity, with two main governments vying for control: one based in Tripoli, and the other in the east, backed by General Khalifa Haftar. Several peace talks brokered by the United Nations and other international actors have made slow progress, but elections promised to unify the country have been delayed multiple times.
The Institute for Economics and Peace, which compiles the Global Peace Index every year, uses a range of indicators to assess a country’s peacefulness. These include the level of violence, political stability, militarisation, and relations with neighbouring countries.
In the case of Libya, the report said that while battle-related deaths have decreased, the lack of central authority, ongoing foreign military presence, and the economic hardships continue to prevent a full return to peace.
Analysts say that foreign powers like Russia, Turkey, Egypt, and the UAE still play major roles in Libya’s affairs, providing military or political support to different factions. This has complicated peacebuilding efforts and made it harder for Libyans to take full control of their own political future.
The report adds that although 2025 brought some relative calm, many Libyans remain displaced, and the country’s oil wealth is still being contested by rival groups. The ongoing power struggle has limited the government’s ability to provide public services, rebuild infrastructure, or create jobs for its citizens.
Libya’s sharp rise in the peace index offers a glimmer of hope, but the Institute for Economics and Peace stresses that genuine reconciliation and political reform are still urgently needed. Without these, the risk of renewed violence and instability remains high.
This year’s Global Peace Index also showed that while some conflict-affected countries made progress, the world overall became slightly less peaceful, with rising tensions in Eastern Europe, Africa, and parts of the Middle East.
