Dr Alastair Finlan teaches in the History Department at the American University in Cairo. Prior to this, he was a Senior Lecturer in the Department of Strategic Studies and International Affairs at Britannia Royal Naval College, where he is still Associate Senior Lecturer. He has also lectured at the Universities of Keele and Plymouth.

In 1991, an ethnically diverse region that had enjoyed decades of peaceful coexistence descended into bitter hatred and chaos, almost overnight. Communities fractured along lines of ethnic and religious affiliation and the ensuing fighting was deeply personal, resulting in brutality, rape and torture, and ultimately the deaths of thousands of people. This book examines the internal upheavals of the former Yugoslavia and their international implications, including the failure of the Vance-Owen plan; the first use of NATO in a combat role and in peace enforcement; and the war in Kosovo, unsanctioned by the UN but prosecuted by NATO forces to prevent the ethnic cleansing of the region.