Counter-terrorism and humanitarian action: UK INGO responses since 2015.

There has been growing awareness of the wide-ranging negative impacts that counter-terrorism measures and sanctions impose on humanitarian action. Drawing on semi-structured interviews with INGO staff, this article examines these impacts for INGOs based in the UK, a context where a particularly complex array of laws, policies and regulatory regimes have emerged alongside an increasingly hostile political and media environment for INGOs, creating an environment characterised by uncertainty. We show that counter-terrorism measures and sanctions are leading INGOs to adopt more conservative approaches to partnership in areas controlled by proscribed groups, undermining broader commitments to the localisation agenda. Our analysis shows that perceptions of risk within INGOs vary considerably but that despite this, INGOs have developed strategies to reduce the impact of counter-terrorism measures, which over time, have led to improved coordination, and in some instances, willingness to push back against regulations.