From Baghdad to Benghazi

The Fall and Revival of Humanitarian Imperialism?

The NATO bombing of Libya is the latest in a long series of Western interventions justified on ‘humanitarian’ grounds since the end of the Cold War. In contrast to other Arab countries that have witnessed uprisings this year, Libya’s revolt has morphed into a civil war. WhileWestern powers took a more hands-off approach in Tunisia and Egypt, in Libya they have involved themselves more directly. Why has the response to Libya been different?

The West’s moral authority to intervene militarily in other countries’ affairs appeared to have taken a serious blow since the 2003 invasion of Iraq. Is the latest intervention in Libya an attempt to rehabilitate humanitarian intervention? What is the Western interest in intervening in Libya anyway? Is the intervention an assertion of imperial might, or should the intervention be welcomed if it helps the rebels’ cause in their struggle to overthrow the Gaddafi dictatorship?