In 1997, 39 humanitarian workers were killed worldwide.

Omissions

• The OCHA/ReliefWeb analysis 'Paying the Ultimate Price' covers the 1997–2001 period, but the accessible snippet only shows the 1998 figure (48 UN/humanitarian organisation employees killed in violent incidents in 1998), not the 1997 figure.
• The Aid Worker Security Database (aidworkersecurity.org) records incident-level data from 1997 onward, but the accessible summary statistics page does not display the 1997 annual total.
• The peer-reviewed BMJ study by Sheik et al. (2000) reports 382 humanitarian worker deaths for 1985–1998 (253 from intentional violence, ~18 per year on average over the full period), which is a different metric/period and does not directly address the 1997 annual count.
• No primary or secondary source explicitly stating '39 humanitarian workers killed in 1997' was found within the search limit.

Sources

• PrimaryAid Worker Security Database (Humanitarian Outcomes) — Major attacks on aid workers: Summary statisticsSummary statistics of major attacks on aid workers (totals for killed, injured, kidnapped shown for comparison periods, e.g. 'Total killed, 350, 387'), with incident data beginning in 1997; the page excerpt does not display a 1997 annual death count of 39.
• PrimaryOCHA HDX — Humanitarian Data Exchange: Aid Worker KIKA (Killed, Injured, Kidnapped or Arrested) datasetResource covering '01 January 1997 to 21 July 2026 on aid workers killed, injured, kidnapped, or arrested (KIKA) based on agency- and open source events'; no 1997 annual total visible in the accessible excerpt.
• AcademicBMJ (PMC) — Sheik M et al., 'Deaths among humanitarian workers', BMJ 2000Study of deaths among humanitarian workers 1985–1998: 'Intentional violence was recorded as the cause of 253 deaths (68%)' of 382 total deaths over the 14-year period; annual 1997-specific count not given in the accessible excerpt.
• SecondaryReliefWeb / OCHA — Paying the Ultimate Price: Analysis of the Deaths of Humanitarian Aid Workers 1997–2001OCHA analysis covering deaths of humanitarian aid workers 1997–2001; the visible excerpt states: 'Below is a list of the forty-eight employees of the United Nations or humanitarian organizations who died in violent incidents in 1998…' (1998 figure, not 1997).