Estimated Death Tolls in the Arab Uprising Against Dictatorships in the Middle East and North Africa

Update and correction:

I had originally posted an infographic detailing the over 19,000 dead in the uprisings of the so-called "Arab Spring," by country. It was so good in showing how Syria and Libya differ from the other cases, that I could not resist. It therefore turns out that I acted somewhat too hastily, for I in the meantime noticed that the source, NOW Lebanon, allows us to reproduce only excerpts from the text of its articles, and not its graphics. I of course need and want to respect that wish.

In any case, it gives me a chance to call grateful attention to the fuller coverage at that site.

In "The cost of revolution: Facts and figures of the Arab Spring," Aline Sara notes that it can be difficult to obtain accurate facts and figures on the human cost of revolt against dictatorships whose essence is the lack of an open society and the threat of physical violence. Nonetheless, "NOW Lebanon has compiled the most reliable statistics on the major uprisings to occur in the Arab world so far to give readers an idea of the cost of revolution."

Readers will be shocked (but not necessarily surprised) to learn that:

Last week, AVAAZ averaged the rate of disappearances in Syria at one per hour, and the global organization estimates that since March 15, over 25,000 people have been arrested, many of whom have been tortured. Twelve thousand are still in custody, it said. 

The essence is the series of infographics:

• Estimated Number of Dead (by country)
• Timeline
• A matrix, showing: "Country + population," "Type of upheaval," and "Outcome"
• Approximate Number of Refugees Caused by Uprising
 

Aline Sara, "The cost of revolution: Facts and figures of the Arab Spring," from NOW Lebanon, 20 August.