Humanitarian Assistance in Modern Conflicts

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During the last 15 years one could observe a new trend whereby military forces were assigned humanitarian roles as a means to use humanitarian assistance in a broader political sense, such as development aid and state building. This trend weakened the perception of humanitarians as neutral and impartial. Humanitarian workers were perceived as part of the armed forces and thus as legitimate targets. Many have debated this subject in recent years. The author takes a step back to analyze the underlying legal principles of humanitarian aid which might entail useful guidelines for the way ahead. Departing from an examination of the principles of impartiality and neutrality, he elaborates on the development of humanitarian assistance from the Balkan to Iraq, taking the emerging problems such as the issues of blurring responsibilities and staff security into consideration. After some reflections on the changing patterns of conflict, the author takes a strictly legal approach in examining the legal basis of humanitarian assistance, concluding with some recommendations. This monograph targets civilian and military assistance workers alike, as well as academics