Military Humanitarian Intervention: A New War on Disease?

Abstract

The 2014 Ebola outbreak in West Africa was the largest and most devastating outbreak of the disease that history has ever witnessed. As of March 3, 2016, there have been 28,639 total reported cases of Ebola and 11,316 confirmed deaths. 2 This unprecedented epidemic affected nations across the globe, including the United States, and threatened the political, economic, and social stability of world order. Sensing the national security implications to the United States, President Obama announced that he was committing 3,000 United States troops to West Africa in September 2014 to combat and control the devastating outbreak of Ebola. The Office of the White House Press Secretary announced: