As the nature of war has changed, so has the role of civilians in it. In an increasingly interconnected and globalized world, the way that media, civil society, and non-governmental actors engage with conflict can be as important as what happens on the battlefield. Forty years after the birth of the human rights movement, non-governmental activists use naming and shaming and other tactics to draw boundaries on warring parties' actions and shape the legal standards against which they will be judged. The work of humanitarian actors can enhance or detract from the political and military goals of parties to a conflict, and as a result they face a more complex environment for carrying out their work. Meanwhile the growth of "embed journalism" and the 24-hour news cycle gives the public a ringside seat to conflict. The articles in this anthology focus on the small cadre of individuals - journalists, media, lawyers, humanitarian and civil society professionals - often caught in between the population and combatants in modern conflict.
Experts outline the dilemmas these individuals face in navigating the complexity of 21st century conflict environments and analyze their impact on modern warfare.