Publication

This paper explores ethical issues surrounding humanitarian intervention. The paper discusses definitions for the terms "humanitarian," "intervention" and "ethics," introduces the basic framework of just war theory and analyzes its central motivations. The paper employs the just war tradition as a framework for discussing moral arguments for and against humanitarian intervention, focusing on ius ad bellum. Subsequently, the paper suggests circumstances in which intervention might be morally licit. The paper advances a more pessimistic view with respect to the use of violence in defense of human rights.