Should outsiders intervene when countries destroy each other?

Islam teaches to make peace between those in conflict and to stop the aggressor, and to do so with justice. In reality, however, the great powers usually decide such matters, and those who try to change things by force without them often bring only more bloodshed.

When people are killing one another, no one can simply look on. The verse above sets out a clear path. First, make peace between those in conflict. If one side keeps doing wrong, stop it together. And when it desists, the peace must be built on justice and not on revenge.

The hadith adds an important thought. You help even the wrongdoer by holding him back from his wrong. So in Islam intervention is not a way to gain power or to take sides. Its purpose is to end injustice, whoever commits it.

The reality of the world, however, often looks different. Whether there is outside intervention in a conflict, and whether a country’s borders may change, is today mostly decided by the great powers. They act in their own interests and rarely take advice from outside.

Those who try to change things by force against that will therefore usually achieve nothing but fresh bloodshed. The ones who suffer are the ordinary people on both sides. So it is wise to judge the situation soberly and not to start hopeless fights.

This does not mean accepting injustice. One can help where people are suffering, call for peace and stand up for justice. Lasting peace only grows where there is justice, and every person and every country can contribute to that.