Jihadist attacks caused more than 5,000 deaths last month alone, according to a study that claims to have tallied fatal-ities caused by Islamist extremists for the first time.

In November there were 664 reported jihadist attacks in 14 countries, resulting in 5,042 deaths, research by the BBC World Service and International Centre for the Study of Radicalisation (ICSR) found.

This equates to an average of 22 attacks a day and 168 deaths as a result of jihadist-related violence.

Islamic State (IS) was identified as the deadliest group, with 308 attacks across Iraq and Syria resulting in 2,206 deaths – 44 per cent of the total death toll. In total, 16 Jihadist groups claimed responsibility for the attacks or were identified as being the perpetrators.

Peter Neumann, director at the ICSR at King’s College London, said: “First and foremost, our data highlight the significant human cost of jihadism.

16 jihadist groups claimed responsibility for the attacks,Islamic State being the deadliest among them with 44 per cent ofthe total

“In just one month, jihadist groups killed 5,042 people – the equivalent of three attacks on the scale of the London bombings in July 2005 each day.

“The data make it clear that jihadists and al-Qaeda are no longer one and the same.

“Sixty per cent of jihadist deaths were caused by groups that have no formal association with al-Qaeda, and they are the ones who will vie for leadership of the movement.

“The overall picture is that of an increasingly ambitious, complex, sophisticated and far-reaching movement.

“Though comparisons are difficult, it seems obvious that the jihadist movement – which, only three years ago, everyone expected to be in a state of terminal decline – are stronger than ever, and that countering them will be a generational challenge.” The worst single day was November 2, when 410 people were killed in 41 attacks, the research said.

A woman reacts during the funeral of a victim of a bomb attack in Sadr City.

The majority of those killed by jihadists were citizens – 2,080 – closely followed by a large number – 1,723 – of military personnel, the BBC and ICSR said.

Iraq, Nigeria, Syria and Afghanistan were the worst four countries to be affected, which accounted for 80 per cent or 4,031 of all deaths.

Iraq suffered the most deaths, with 1,770, over a third of the total death toll, the research said.

Nigeria followed with 786 deaths from just 27 incidents, according to the figures, highlighting the deadly nature of Boko Haram’s bomb attacks.

Boko Haram carried out far fewer attacks – 30 over the month – but these were large and deadly, killing 801 people in Nigeria and Cameroon. A total of 151 incidents from which 720 people died were attributed to the Taliban, the research found.

In Afghanistan, 152 attacks led to 782 deaths, Syria followed with 693 deaths from 110 attacks and some 37 attacks in Yemen led to 410 fatalities.

Bombs accounted for the most deaths, with 1,653 people killed this way in 241 blasts, the research showed.

The deadliest single attack was the assault on the Grand Mosque at Kano, Nigeria, on November 28, in which 120 died.

Gun attacks took at least 1,574 other lives. A total of 666 other deaths were described as ambushes, many of which involved shootings.

Some 426 people were executed. They included 50 who were reported to have been beheaded in Syria, Yemen and Libya.