Diamond in the Rough

Blood diamonds, also known as conflict diamonds and less commonly as hot diamonds, are diamonds mined or traded in areas affected by armed conflict and used to finance rebel movements, insurgencies, or other armed groups. The term became widely associated with diamonds mined in the late 20th and early 21st centuries during civil wars in Angola, Ivory Coast, Sierra Leone, Liberia, Guinea, and Guinea-Bissau. Blood diamonds are also frequently smuggled by organized crime syndicates for sale on the black market. According to the Kimberley Process, 2023 global trade in rough diamonds totaled approximately 112 million carats. Similar terms, such as conflict resources and conflict minerals, are used for other natural resources exploited under comparable conditions.