4) Gujarat, India – 2002

Religion is regularly blamed for wars and rioting and on the surface this often appears to be the case. But when you scratch through the reported reasoning for the riots you often find that something else lies at its core: power and greed.

That’s the case with the Gujarat riots in 2002. Muslim and Hindu groups have been at each others throats for millenia and this riot was the culmination of years of tension. A train containing 58 Hindus was returning from a pilgrimage when it was set on fire by Muslims.

This literal spark set into flame intense violence against the Muslim minority across the entire country. Scholars now believe that the train incident was a staged trigger as the violence that followed seemed so well prepared and pre-planned. The ensuing riots saw the deaths of 790 Muslims and 254 Hindus; 2,500 people were injured non-fatally, and 223 more were reported missing.

There were instances of rape, children being burned alive, and widespread looting and destruction of property. The killing went on for weeks with the State doing little to calm the situation down. Many feel that the violence was even encouraged and aided by the government which only made the Muslim population more determined and terrified. The aftermath of court cases and media coverage never really saw justice done.