Everybody's War

The Politics of Aid in the Syria Crisis

Edited by Jehan Bseiso, Michiel Hofman, and Jonathan Whittall

Explores the broader complexities of aid delivery in one of the defining conflicts of the twenty-first century
Exposes readers to a diverse range of perspectives on the Syrian War
Features unpublished source material and stories from the front line of humanitarian aid in Syria

Everybody's War

The Politics of Aid in the Syria Crisis

Edited by Jehan Bseiso, Michiel Hofman, and Jonathan Whittall

Description

The Syrian crisis is one of the most serious humanitarian disasters in recent history. Yet the widely reported numbers—more than 6 million displaced, including 5 million refugees—reflect only a fractional toll of the conflict. Numerous international organizations, states, and civil society movements have called for the laws of war to be respected, sieges lifted, and humanitarian access facilitated. But beneath each of these humanitarian appeals lies a complicated reality extending beyond the binary narratives that have come to define the war in Syria.

Everybody's War examines the complexities of humanitarianism in Syria and the wide-ranging consequences for both Syria's populations and humanitarian responses to future conflicts. Organized by Médecins Sans Frontières, this edited volume brings together academics and humanitarian practitioners from across the globe to provide a multitude of perspectives on the politics of aid in the Syrian war. Contributors explore the humanitarian crisis behind the Syrian conflict through the history and fragmentation of Syrian health care, the role of international humanitarian law in enabling attacks on health facilities, and the lived experience of siege in all its layers. Further attention is given to the ways in which humanitarian actors have fed the war economy and joined the information wars that have raged throughout the region over the past ten years.

While the Syrian crisis has been everybody's war, it has certainly not been everybody's victory. This volume shares the intricate story of aid delivery and humanitarian complicity within one of the defining conflicts of the twenty-first century.

Everybody's War

The Politics of Aid in the Syria Crisis

Edited by Jehan Bseiso, Michiel Hofman, and Jonathan Whittall

Contributor List
Foreword
Amani Ballour
Introduction
Jehan Bseiso, Michiel Hofman, and Jonathan Whittall
Chapter 1. Contested Statehood: The Politics of Health Care in Syria
Omar Dewachi, Fouad Gehad Marei, and Jonathan Whittall
Chapter 2. Health System Fragmentation and the Syrian Conflict
Aula Abbara, Manar Marzouk, and Hala Mkhallalati
Chapter 3. The Moral Norm, the Law, and the Limits of Protection for Wartime Medical Units
Neve Gordon
Chapter 4. When Perceptions and Aspirations Clash: Humanitarianism in Syria's Neighboring States
Dawn Chatty
Chapter 5. The Business of Conflict: Humanitarian Assistance and the War Economy in Syria
Duncan McLean
Chapter 6. Endless Siege: The Chain of Complicity in Syrian Suffering
Jonathan Whittall
Chapter 7. Information Warfare and the Role of Global Humanitarians
Alexey Khlebnikov
Chapter 8. Naming and Shaming the Bombers
Michiel Hofman

Everybody's War

The Politics of Aid in the Syria Crisis

Edited by Jehan Bseiso, Michiel Hofman, and Jonathan Whittall

Author Information

Edited by Jehan Bseiso, Executive Director, Médecins Sans Frontières - Lebanon, Edited by Michiel Hofman, Senior Humanitarian Specialist, Médecins Sans Frontières, and Edited by Jonathan Whittall, Director of the Analysis Department, Médecins Sans Frontières Operational Centre in Brussels

Jehan Bseiso is Executive Director for Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) Lebanon. She joined MSF in 2008 and worked in countries such as Afghanistan, Pakistan, Iraq, Ethiopia, and Belgium, primarily in communications and advocacy. Michiel Hofman has been Senior Humanitarian Specialist for MSF based out of Belfast since 2011. Previously, he worked for Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) in field missions between 1993 and 1998 as Emergency Coordinator and Head of Mission for MSF in Liberia, DRC, Bosnia, Burundi, Sri Lanka, Brazil, South Sudan and Kosovo. He is also Co-founder of The Antares Foundation, a Dutch non-profit organisation which supports local NGOs in providing psychosocial support for staff working in high-stress environments. Jonathan Whittall is Director of the Analysis department for Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) Operational Centre in Brussels. He previously established and led MSF's Programmes Unit in Southern Africa before becoming head of humanitarian analysis for MSF.

He has worked in MSF emergency projects in South Sudan, Afghanistan, Pakistan, Libya, Bahrain, Syria, Iraq and Lebanon.

Contributors:

Aula Abbara, Imperial College NHS Healthcare Trust, London and Imperial College

Amani Ballour, Al Amal Fund

Dawn Chatty, University of Oxford

Omar Dewachi, Rutgers University and the American University of Beirut

Neve Gordon, Queen Mary University of London

Alexey Khlebnikov, Russian International Affairs Council (RIAC)

Fouad Gehad Marei, University of Birmingham

Manar Marzouk, University of Oxford

Duncan McLean, Médecins Sans Frontières, Geneva

Hala Mkhallalati, Institute for Global Health at the University College of London

Everybody's War

The Politics of Aid in the Syria Crisis

Edited by Jehan Bseiso, Michiel Hofman, and Jonathan Whittall

Reviews and Awards

"Everybody's War casts an unsparing and critical light on the challenges faced by humanitarians caught between the politics of war and the moral duty to save lives. Through diverse chapters, it problematizes the many inhumanities of the Syrian conflict and questions the future of humanitarianism when civilians become the targets of war. This troubling but essential volume is long overdue, and vitally needed." - Antonio Donini, Graduate Institute, Geneva and Co-founder, United Against Inhumanity