Humanitarian Intervention after Kosovo: Learning from Mistakes in East Timor, Iraq and Darfur

by Aidan Hehir

From the publisher:
This title offers a critical analysis of the record of global civil society and the normative thesis since NATO's intervention in Kosovo. The book advances a new direction for the humanitarian intervention debate. This book unites theory and practice; it provides an in depth analysis of events through case studies of Iraq, Darfur and others, while other chapters build on this data to provide robust theoretical arguments. It makes an important contribution to the theoretical thinking on humanitarian intervention. It examines what makes a 'just' war at a time when a number of recent international issues have reignited the debate regarding internal intervention.

When should the international community intervene to prevent suffering within sovereign states? This book argues that since Kosovo, the normative thesis has failed to influence international politics, as evidenced by events in Iraq and Darfur. This critique rejects realism and offers a new perspective on this important issue.