DOI: 10.52704/bssocialscience.1857845 ISSN: 2618-6640

A Critical Reexamination of International Humanitarianism: Power, Ethics, and Critical Human Security across Africa, Asia, and Europe

Faruk Hadžić
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This study offers a critical reexamination of international humanitarianism as both a mechanism of power and an ethical project within international relations, situated at the intersection of Critical Human Security (CHS), Critical Security Studies (CSS), and global justice. While humanitarianism presents itself as neutral and morally universal, the paper interrogates its persistent entanglement with geopolitical power, militarization, donor agendas, and strategic interests. Drawing on historical and contemporary cases across Africa, Asia, and Europe, the analysis explores the tension between humanitarian ethical commitments and the political and operational realities of international intervention. The study argues that international humanitarianism functions simultaneously as a tool of global power and as an ethical ideology, challenging conventional assumptions of neutrality, impartiality, and moral exceptionalism. By foregrounding CHS principles—freedom from fear, want, and indignity—and integrating global justice concerns such as equity, accountability, and the redress of structural inequalities, the paper advances a reframing of humanitarian action as both ethically rigorous and politically responsible. It advocates for interventions that prioritize local agency, ethical accountability, and human security outcomes, while critically examining how power relations, climate change, wars, protracted conflicts, and structural inequalities shape humanitarian practices across diverse contexts. The analysis emphasizes the moral and operational responsibilities of states, NGOs, and international institutions, underscoring the inseparability of power, ethics, and human security in contemporary international humanitarianism.

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