It is a common assumption that only armed military or police can do the work of peacekeeping. However, unarmed civilians have been successfully ‘keeping the peace’ in situations of violent conflict all over the world, and their numbers are increasing. Unarmed Civilian Protection (UCP) is a growing field practice, implemented by more than 40 organisations […]

In the wake of the 2014 Ukrainian revolution, unrest in the Donbas region grew into a war between pro-Russian rebel armed groups, seeking independence from Ukraine or unification with Russia, and the post-revolutionary Ukrainian government. Dr Anna Matveeva tells the story of the insurgency from the perspective of the rebellion, providing the detailed account of […]

Over the past twenty years, the aid community has increasingly acknowledged how well-intended policies and programmes can actually do harm by increasing conflict. In response to this, conflict sensitivity has emerged as a set of principles and approaches which could help aid actors to mitigate the risk of their interventions and to leverage their potential […]

Last month, the Foreign Affairs Council adopted Conclusions on Strengthening Civilian Common Security and Defence Policy (CSDP), in which Foreign Ministers once again highlighted the importance of mainstreaming human rights and gender into all missions’ activities in order to improve their effectiveness. One of the key elements in translating this policy commitment into practice is […]

Cameroon is going through a critical moment. The Boko Haram insurgency is on the wane in the Lake Chad basin but attacks are continuing against civilian and military targets in Cameroon’s Far North. The war has killed 2,000 Cameroonians, displaced 170,000 and triggered the rise of vigilante self-defence groups. Meanwhile, Cameroon’s Anglophone region has experienced […]

Earlier this year, Search for Common Ground, with the support of the United Kingdom’s Foreign & Commonwealth Office in Bishkek and in partnership with the Royal United Services Institute, published a research paper entitled ‘Understanding the Factors Contributing to Radicalisation Among Central Asian Labour Migrants in Russia’. The paper explores linkages between economic alienation and […]

With a new reform-oriented government in place since May 2017, the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (hereafter Macedonia) has emerged from its most severe political crisis of the last two decades. With democratic checks and balances being progressively restored, Macedonia seems to be on the right reform path. Cautious steps towards reconciliation with Greece are […]

Conflict and violence appear on our screens every day. But what do people actually think about peace and conflict? How should we respond to conflict more effectively in order to ensure lasting peace? How important is economic and political inclusion for peace? And how optimistic or pessimistic are people about the prospects for peace? This […]

The Global Coalition Against Daesh has set stabilisation as a major goal after the military “liberation” of Iraqi and Syrian territories from Daesh, and created short-term funding tools to this end. Meanwhile, since 2014, a huge number of Iraqi activists and ordinary citizens have taken to the streets in several waves of protests to demand […]

‘Counter Terror and the logic of violence in Somalia’s civil war: Time for a new approach’ is a new publication written by Joanne Crouch from Saferworld’s Somalia team. The paper explores the effectiveness of the counter-terror approach in tackling conflict with al-Shabaab looking at it through two key lenses. The first is an overview of […]