Abstract
M.A. (Politics)
2010 was definitely a tumultuous year for some of the key countries in the North African region. The generalized movement in the region and labelled as the Arab Spring, constituted an opportunity for protesters to formulate their demand for democracy. The initially peaceful protest ended up with violent demonstrations between civilians and dictatorial government across the region. In response to the uprising in Libya in 2011, the UNSC introduced a no-fly zone order to halt the atrocities emanating from Gaddafi’s regime against the civilians. Gaddafi’s unwillingness to comply with the UNSC provision paved way for the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation to lead a controversial military intervention that forced the United Nations to re-take full responsibility in the search for peace and security in Libya in late 2011 by establishing the United Nations Support Mission in Libya (UNSMIL) to conduct a mediation agenda to help Libyans to transit from war to democracy. This study found that a prime factor impacting humanitarian intervention occurrence in Libya is the UN Security Council’s task to provide authorization within a context of disputed legality of humanitarian interventions. In addition, the thesis concludes that United Nations Security Council member’s positions with respect to intervening were guided by their political interests and to a lesser extent by their economic interests. Finally, all these factors undermined the UN peace-building efforts in Libya, which explains why the issue is still unresolved eight years later following the first intervention in 2011. There are also indispensable components of an inclusive explanation of the necessity of the UN to work in unison with the international community which include the EU, the US and influential Arab States to finally resolve the question of peace in Libya.