Humanitarian intervention is a multi-faceted issue that has been a source of concern in international political and legal circles for many decades. It is often defined as “[…] the threat or use of force across state borders by a State (or a group of States) aimed at preventing or putting an end to widespread and serious violations of the fundamental human rights of individuals other than its own citizens, without the permission of the State in whose territory the force is applied” (Keohane 1). After the trial of the Nazis in the Nuremberg Trials on the basis of “crimes against humanity” and genocide, the abuse of human rights became a more salient issue in international society (Buchanan 136). However, when situations of human rights violations reach emergency levels, it becomes complicated to intervene despite international laws that condemn genocide and other large-scale human rights violations. This is due to Article 2(4) and Chapters VI and VII of the United Nations Charter, which essentially state that nations cannot intervene militarily in the affairs of other nations (Wheeler 41). These laws make it difficult for nations to aid oppressed citizens of other nations unless human rights violations constitute a “threat to international peace and security” or unless the intervention is in self-defense or otherwise authorized by the Council of United Nations Security (Wheeler 92). The books Humanitarian Intervention: Ethical, Legal, and Political Dilemmas, by Robert Keohane and JL Holzgrefe, and Saving Strangers: Humanitarian Intervention in International Society by Nicholas J. Wheeler contain valuable information and analysis on the topic of unauthorized interventions. Humanitarian Intervention is a series of essays selected by Keohane and H...... middle of paper ......eeler and the way his information supported a single argument, I found it easier to follow, while Holzgrefe and Keohane's was more informative about the breadth of viewpoints surrounding the topic. Unauthorized humanitarian intervention is a complex issue in international society and can be analyzed in great depth and in a multitude of different ways. Looking at the issue from moral, philosophical, and political perspectives, many different arguments can be made about how to reconcile legal issues with the moral intuition of acting to help those who are oppressed. Saving Strangers, arguing a single point of view, and Humanitarian Intervention, gathering many different opinions, both provide informative and well-written summaries of one of the most complicated issues affecting international relations in recent decades..