The attacks of the Islamic State to cultural heritage in Syria and Iraq have been described by UNESCO and other international organizations as a strategy of "cultural cleansing". However, the...Show moreThe attacks of the Islamic State to cultural heritage in Syria and Iraq have been described by UNESCO and other international organizations as a strategy of "cultural cleansing". However, the concept was rejected multiple times in the framework of international law, and now amounts to a groundless menace, incapable of generating consequences for the perpetrators. This thesis uses critical concept analysis to understand why international organizations keep using the concept "cultural cleansing" despite its recurrent exclusion from international law, and what consequences this concept encompasses.Show less
The relationship between humanitarian aid and peace prospects, and the differences between this in the case of a proxy civil war and a non-proxy civil war is that in a proxy civil war there is a...Show moreThe relationship between humanitarian aid and peace prospects, and the differences between this in the case of a proxy civil war and a non-proxy civil war is that in a proxy civil war there is a greater need for a specific case approach because proxy civil wars are much more complicated. In a non-proxy civil war a peaceful situation has to been agreed on on the local level and humanitarian aid could contribute to peace prospects, in a proxy civil war humanitarian aid affects peace prospects to a lesser degree because of the multi-layered nature of this type of conflict where on all layers of the proxy civil war peace has to be agreed on. Moreover, aid providers, donors, and other (foreign) involved actors have more influence on a proxy civil war than in a non-proxy civil war and therefore humanitarian aid could adversely affect peace prospects.Show less
