The Responsibility to Protect in Situations of Internal Unrest and Tensions: Libya and Syria as Examples

Abstract

Redefining the principle of sovereignty, the Responsibility to Protect (R2P) places upon each State the fundamental obligation to safeguard its population from certain grave crimes. In cases of failure, it authorizes the international community to intervene to ensure that protection. Through a legal approach and based on the analysis of two emblematic cases — Syria and Libya — this paper seeks to understand to what extent the use of R2P, as a political instrument aimed at countering violations of the most fundamental human rights, enables better protection of individuals facing internal unrest and tensions. The objective is to identify alternative mechanisms that could strengthen the protection of individuals in contexts where international humanitarian law proves to be most limited.