Development organizations in militarized settings

This is a good article from the World Policy Institute about the implications of placing development workers in conflict zones. The author draws her lessons from Afghanistan, but the message is valid anywhere--when outside development agencies are present in a complex conflict zone, they are inherently tied to the conflict. They cannot pretend to be neutral actors, but must rather be explicit about their loyalties and their agendas. Otherwise they are sitting ducks to become victims of the violence, and furthermore their interventions can't be that effective.