Regional organisations and humanitarian intervention: assessing their role in Libya

The principle of “responsibility to protect” (R2P) in accordance with the principle of humanitarian intervention has been a debated issue in international relations which derives from the normative shift from sovereignty to human rights. In this thesis, this normative shift is analyzed in detail to demonstrate the conditions justifying humanitarian intervention in Libya in 2011 since it is a critical case to test the practical level of the principle of R2P. These conditions are clarified by describing the reasons behind the inclusion of the international community and particularly the regional organizations in the process of humanitarian intervention in Libya authorized by the United Nations Security Council. The stances of NATO, the African Union, the European Union, and the Arab League during and after the crisis in Libya are chosen as data sources for analyzing the justification and success of the intervention. Although the expectation from regional organizations to have an active role in ending human sufferings, Libya case illustrates that humanitarian concerns do not always lead humanitarian intervention. This study concludes that the stances of these organizations as well as with the contributions of various internal factors varied as political, economic, and social dissatisfactions in Libya has turned the country in a place of turmoi