While Syrians Have Faced Unimaginable Suffering, the Idea of Humanitarian Intervention Has Withered and Died

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In The Media

Malcolm H. Kerr Carnegie Middle East Center

While Syrians Have Faced Unimaginable Suffering, the Idea of Humanitarian Intervention Has Withered and Died

While the international community's commitment to protecting civilians from conflict reached a high point in the 1990's, it has now been abandoned.

By Michael Young

Published on Dec 12, 2018

Source: The National

During the 1990s, the notion of humanitarian intervention, particularly the responsibility to protect civilians from human rights abuses, gained credibility internationally. The high point came during the wars in Bosniaand Kosovo, when Nato intervened to protect Muslim populations suffering at the hands of the Bosnian Serbs, and later the Serbian state.

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This article was originally published in The National.

About the Author

Michael Young

Editor, Diwan, Senior Editor, Malcolm H. Kerr Carnegie Middle East Center

Michael Young is the editor of Diwan and a senior editor at the Malcolm H. Kerr Carnegie Middle East Center.

Recent Work

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Political Reform Levant Syria Middle East

Carnegie does not take institutional positions on public policy issues; the views represented herein are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of Carnegie, its staff, or its trustees.

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