Kosovo was not the first military campaign termed a "humanitarian intervention." But it did rekindle debate on whether and when a state or group of states may use force with the stated aim of preventing or ending widespread and grave violations of fundamental human rights of individuals other than their own citizens.
This review essay from Ethics & International Affairs Volume 15.1 (Spring 2001) covers books by Noam Chomsky, Howard Clark, Philip Hammond and Edward S. Herman (eds.), Tim Judah, Tariq Ali (ed.) Nicholas J. Wheeler, Michael Ignatieff, and Ivo H. Daalder and Michael E. O'Hanlon.