The mission creep in the western military intervention in Libya shows how narrow geopolitical interests, even at the risk of creating another Iraq or Afghanistan, are driving a professed humanitarian campaign. From initially seeking to protect civilians to now aiming for a swift, total victory in Libya, the mission creep that has characterised the western powers’ military attack raises troubling questions about their Libyan strategy and the risk that it could end up creating a jihadist citadel at Europe’s southern doorstep. Read more
Saving civilians: murky geopolitics