humanitarian intervention

Humanitarian intervention is a controversial issue in international relations and it is imperative for policy makers to understand its nature and complexities. This article seeks to explain France’s humanitarian actions during the Rwandan genocide in 1994 and how they were used to protect its strategic interests in Africa and Rwanda. Retrospectively analyzing the actions of France during the Rwandan genocide would provide invaluable insights on how powerful states advance their selfish national interests under the guise of humanitarianism. France’s military intervention in Rwanda represented the attempt to weave its strategic interests with its duty under international law to respond in cases of genocide and serious violations of human rights. The descriptive analysis method is used to build the arguments of this article and the conclusion reveals that France’s actions of leading the humanitarian intervention during the Rwandan genocide were not manifestations of a benevolent foreign policy but the pursuit of its selfish goals.

The doctrines of humanitarian intervention and "unwilling and unable," closely linked to the Responsibility to Protect (R2P), provide frameworks for addressing humanitarian crises when states fail to protect their populations from atrocities like genocide, war crimes, and ethnic cleansing. These doctrines, however, face legal, political, and practical challenges, often clashing with state sovereignty under Article 2(7) of the UN Charter. This study employs a descriptive-analytical approach to examine these frameworks, distinguishing humanitarian intervention’s unilateral tendencies from R2P’s structured, UN-authorized approach. Through case studies of Libya (2011), Syria (2012–present), and the Rohingya crisis (2017), it analyzes their alignment with these doctrines, their challenges, and proposes practical reforms to enhance clarity, accountability, and effectiveness. By addressing ambiguities, political misuse, and sovereignty tensions, this study aims to strengthen global mechanisms for atrocity prevention while respecting international legal principles.