Humanitarian Intervention in light of the Responsibility to Protect; Reconciling International Humanitarian Law and Sovereign Legitimacy

Document Type : Original Article

Authors

1 Department of Public International Law, Bu.C., Islamic Azad University, Bushehr, Iran

2 Department of Law, Payame Noor University, Tehran, Iran.

3 Department of Public Law, Shi.C., Islamic Azad University, Shiraz, Iran

10.22091/ijicl.2026.15175.1232

Abstract

Humanitarian Intervention remains a deeply contested issue in International law, emerging where civilian protection imperatives confront the legal limits on the use of force; and research argues that such intervention gains legitimacy only when the Responsibility to Protect (R2P) is embedded as the rule based element within International Humanitarian law (IHL) (1). The endorsement of the R2P at the 2005 World Summit redefined sovereignty as a duty toward populations. Yet, its implementation has exposed a continuing tension between R2Ps preventive rationale and the conduct based constraints of International humanitarian law once force is employed (2). It further develops an institutional accountability framework designed to ensure rigorous compliance with International humanitarian law, particularly the rules governing the permissible scale of force; the proportionality of military action in relation to civilian harm and the principle of distinction in targeting during R2P operations. (3). Through doctrinal analysis and selected case studies (including Libya, Syria and Ukraine and Gaza, among others) the study reveals repetitive ambiguities in legal interpretation, uneven enforcement outcomes and a significant accountability gap. (4). By reconciling humanitarian urgency with legal restraint, the article advances a legally grounded framework for regulating humanitarian intervention within contemporary International law, with particular emphasis on the post-crisis and reconstruction dimensions of the Responsibility to protect. (5). I will conclude that only through firm integration within International humanitarian law can the R2P move beyond rhetoric and emerge as a credible legal framework capable of addressed humanitarian crises without eroding core humanitarian norms.

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Iranian Journal of International and Comparative Law

Articles in Press, Accepted Manuscript
Available Online from 27 June 2026

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