Humanitarian Aid Vs Humanitarian Intervention: The Differences

Humanitarianism is the promotion of human welfare through independent, neutral and impartial assistance. Humanitarianism can take many forms. However, we often hear terms such as humanitarian aid and humanitarian interventions used interchangeably. Although both aim to reduce human suffering, in fact, they are hugely different.

Humanitarian aid is delivered by neutral and impartial organisations directly to people affected by crises. It does not require international legal backing and is often done in cooperation with national governments. In contrast, humanitarian interventions are military actions aimed at stopping human rights violations. They violate the sovereignty of a state and require international legal justification.

Now we know the key differences between humanitarian interventions and humanitarian assistance, let’s breakdown how and why they are not the same…

Differences Between Humanitarian Aid and Humanitarian Intervention: An Overview

Humanitarian AidHumanitarian Intervention
Non-militaryUse of military force
Often enacted with cooperation of a stateViolates a state’s sovereignty
Directly helps people in needAction taken against a government or armed groups
No legal bases neededShould seek legal justification
Led by international organisations and NGOsIntervention is by states or multiple states
Aims to help people affected by crisesAim is to protect civilians from war crimes

One of the most important aspects of humanitarian aid is that it is non-violent. Humanitarian assistance is not provided by use of military force, but my neutral and independent organisations. The core principles of humanitarian aid enshrine that is delivered by non-combatants, making it very different from a humanitarian intervention.

Humanitarian interventions are military actions taken with the aim of reducing human suffering and preventing atrocities. The use of military force to achieve humanitarian aims makes it very different from a humanitarian aid response. In humanitarian interventions, military force is used to prevent a crisis continuing. Humanitarian aid is used to help people affected by crises. These are crucial difference.

When a country is struck by a disaster, conflict or crises, often an international call is made for humanitarian assistance. A key aspect of humanitarian aid is that it is delivered with approval, and cooperation, of a state’s governments*. This is an important difference between humanitarian aid and humanitarian interventions.

In contrast, humanitarian interventions are conducted against the wishes of a country. Humanitarian interventions violate a state’s sovereignty by use of military force with the aim of protecting civilians and ending atrocities. Humanitarian interventions are often made against states that have not allowed humanitarian aid access or where fighting is preventing the distribution of aid. This marks a key difference between humanitarian interventions and humanitarian assistance.

Humanitarian aid directly helps people in need who are affected by conflicts, disasters and crises. Projects are run to assist and protect people whilst giving them the resources to rebuild their lives. This focus on providing relief and assistance to people in need is actually a key contrast between humanitarian aid and humanitarian interventions.

Humanitarian interventions are military actions taken against a government or armed group with the aim of ending violence and stopping atrocities against civilians. The attacks made in a humanitarian intervention only target the perpetrators of human rights violations with the aim to then be able to assist the victims. This is an important difference with humanitarian aid.

Another key aspect of humanitarian assistance is that it does not require a legal basis. The delivery of aid to people in need is done through an agreement between humanitarian actors such as NGOs or the UN and local governments or armed groups. It does not require international legal authorisation, which is another way it differs from humanitarian intervention.

An important way that humanitarian intervention is different to humanitarian aid is that it requires an international legal agreement. Humanitarian interventions are normally** approved by the United Nations and this gives them a legal foundation. This is required because humanitarian interventions require the violation of a state’s sovereignty by military action.

An important difference between humanitarian aid and humanitarian intervention is that humanitarian aid is delivered by neutral and impartial organisations. Humanitarian actors, such as NGOs, the UN, civil society groups or international organisations manage and deliver humanitarian aid independently of governments, politics or militaries.

A key different between humanitarian interventions and humanitarian assistance is that humanitarian interventions are undertaken by militaries, not independent organisations such as NGOs. In order for human rights violations to be stopped and civilians protected, humanitarian interventions require the use of armed force and this means it is not independent of governments.

The final key differentiation between humanitarian aid and humanitarian intervention is that humanitarian aid aims to directly help people affected by crises. It provides material assistance and protection to disaster affected people. Humanitarian aid does not directly prevent human rights violations by armed groups and this is an important difference between it and humanitarian interventions.

The aim of a humanitarian intervention is to protect civilians from armed violence rather than directly assisting people. A humanitarian intervention is a military action that tries to prevent atrocities against civilians. The protection of civilians by the use of military force is a crucial difference between humanitarian aid and humanitarian interventions.

Examples of the Differences Between Humanitarian Aid and Humanitarian Interventions

In order to explore the differences between humanitarian aid and humanitarian intervention, let’s look at some examples of each. Some of the best-known humanitarian responses include:

Among the most famous humanitarian interventions are:

Now let’s contrast and see what makes these humanitarian aid responses so different from the humanitarian interventions.

In 2010, a massive earthquake hit the country of Haiti. A huge humanitarian relief effort was launched to assist the people affected. Importantly, this response was launched following requests by the Haitian government. Military force against the government Haiti was not taken, marking a key difference between this humanitarian response and a humanitarian intervention.

Another example of humanitarian aid is the response to the 2010 Asian Tsunami. The response directly assisted people in need. The humanitarian actions were not taken against the government of the nations affected. This is another good example of a humanitarian aid as opposed to a humanitarian intervention.

The earthquake that struck Nepal in 2015 resulted in a large-scale humanitarian response. A key element of humanitarian aid is that it does not require international legal justifications like humanitarian interventions do. The humanitarian response to the Nepal earthquake fits exactly this model as aid was delivered following requests from the Nepalese government not because of an international legal agreement.

Major flooding hit areas of Pakistan in 2013. The humanitarian response to this was led by NGOs and international aid organisations. There was not international military action taken. The response also did not violate the sovereignty of the nation of Pakistan. Again, this is a good example of humanitarian aid and highlights some of the key differences with humanitarian interventions.

A final example of humanitarian aid is the international communities’ response to Yemen’s Civil War. Here, humanitarian relief is being provided to people in need with the aim of protecting them from the conflict and famine. This differs from a humanitarian intervention, which if to happen in Yemen would involve international military action being taken against the armed groups with the aim of stopping atrocities against civilians.

In 1992, the UN approved the use of military action in Somalia to end the conflict there and allow the delivery of humanitarian aid to civilians. The US mission that was launched is seen as a archetypical example of a humanitarian intervention. The use of military force to try and end human suffering makes this example very different from a humanitarian aid response.

The Sierra Leone Civil War caused immense suffering, with extensive atrocities committed against civilians. In 1999, the British army intervened in an attempt to prevent further human rights violations. This military intervention involved direct combat with armed groups in Sierra Leone. It is a good example of how humanitarian interventions use force against governments and military actors, as opposed to humanitarian aid responses, that just deliver assistance to people affected.

In 1999 and 2000, the United Nations passed resolutions 1279 and 1291. These allowed for the deployment of armed UN peacekeepers to the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). The aim of this intervention was to combat armed groups in the area and secure protection for civilians. It is a good example of how humanitarian interventions are usually based on international legal agreements.

The NATO intervention into the Kosovan War in 1999 is another example of a humanitarian intervention. It shows how humanitarian interventions involve actions by states – as military force is used against another country or armed group to end human suffering. This is different to humanitarian aid where assistance is provided directly to people affected by crises, conflict and disasters.

Why Humanitarian Aid and Humanitarian Interventions Aren’t the Same

There are many reasons why humanitarian aid and humanitarian interventions are not the same. The first is that they aim to help people different ways. Humanitarian aid provides assistance to people affected by crises and disaster, whereas humanitarian intentions use military force to protect people. They both aim to assist people, but the methods used vary greatly.

The second reason why humanitarian aid and humanitarian interventions are different is because of the political contexts in which they occur. Humanitarian interventions happen when the world is outraged at the atrocities committed by armed actors and politicians decide to take international military action to stop them. Humanitarian aid is deployed when large numbers of people are in need of assistance regardless of the international political context.  Politicians do not need to decide that aid is required for a humanitarian response to be launched.

Another reason why humanitarian intervention and humanitarian relief are different is because of the types of events they aim to resolve. Humanitarian interventions aim to immediately stop violent human rights violations by armed actors against civilians. Humanitarian assistance aims to prevent loss of life and injury from disaster and conflicts and assist people to rebuild. Humanitarian aid also helps people living in poverty.

A key reason why humanitarian aid and humanitarian interventions are not the same is the public perceptions. Since the failings of humanitarian interventions in Somalia and Libya, combined with the misrepresentation of military actions as humanitarian interventions, such as the 2003 invasion of Iraq, public views have been strongly negative. This is different to humanitarian aid, that although having some failings, is generally well perceived by people.

A further reason why humanitarian assistance and humanitarian interventions are different is their historical backgrounds. Both concepts arose in the 19th century, but from different routes. Humanitarian aid is generally considered to come from the ideas of Henry Dunant and the foundation of the Red Cross. It is generally viewed the first humanitarian interventions was the British, French and Russian involvement in the Greek War of Independence in 1827.

The final reason as to why humanitarian aid and humanitarian intervention differ is because of their final outcomes. Humanitarian interventions often result in military occupation, further conflict, change of political leadership or further international intervention. Humanitarian responses aim to result in people being able to recover and return to their lives following a crises or disaster.