Arab and African regional organizations

Abstract

This thesis analyses the Libyan uprising of 2011, focusing on the role of Arab and African regional organizations' role upon the UNSC's decision making process leading to the adoption of Resolution 1970 and Resolution 1973. The decision to intervene in Libya was made within a month of the people of Libya began their uprising against the Qaddafi regime and regional organizations appeared to be visible actors in this rapid response by the international community acting under the principle of Responsibility to Protect. Even though most of the regional organizations condemned the brutal regime immediately, certain differences emerged among the regional responses as the conflict escalated. This thesis will examine the different reactions of the: African Union, the Arab League's and the Gulf Cooperation Council's influences upon the UNSC's decision to intervene in Libya for humanitarian purposes. The intervention was concluded with the death of the dictator who ruled Libya for over four decades, allowing the country to hold free elections at last.