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The Politics of Urban Destruction 61 Ethics, Liberalism and Realism in Martin Coward International Relations Mark D Urbicide The term ‘urbicide’ became popular during the 1992–95 Bosnian War as a way of referring to widespread and deliberate destruction of the urban environment. Coined by writers on urban development in America, urbicide captures the sense that this widespread and deliberate destruction of buildings is a distinct form of violence. Using Martin Heidegger’s notion of space and Jean-Luc Nancy’s idea of com- munity, Martin Coward outlines a theoretical understanding of the urban condition at stake in such violence. He contends that buildings are targeted because they make possible a plural public space that is contrary to the political aims of ethnic-nationalist regimes. Illustrated with reference to several post-Cold War confl icts – including Bosnia, Chechnya and Israel/Palestine – this book is the fi rst comprehensive analysis of organised violence against urban environments. It offers an original perspective to those seeking to better understand urbanity, political violence and the politics of exclusion. Martin Coward is a lecturer in International Relations at the University of Sussex, UK. His research focuses on the nexus of identity, violence and territory. Currently, he is investigating the manner in which this nexus is exhibited in the contemporary relationship between city and war. Routledge Advances in International Relations and Global Politics 1 Foreign Policy and Discourse Analysis 10 Idealism and Realism in France, Britain and Europe International Relations Henrik Larsen Robert M. A. Crawford 2 Agency, Structure and International 11 National and International Confl icts, Politics 1945–1995 From ontology to empirical enquiry New empirical and theoretical Gil Friedman and Harvey Starr approaches Frank Pfetsch and Christoph Rohloff 3 The Political Economy of Regional Co-operation in the Middle East 12 Party Systems and Voter Alignments Ali Carkoglu, Mine Eder and Kemal Revisited Kirisci Edited by Lauri Karvonen and Stein Kuhnle 4 Peace Maintenance The evolution of international political 13 Ethics, Justice & International authority Relations Jarat Chopra Constructing an international community 5 International Relations and Historical Peter Sutch Sociology Breaking down boundaries 14 Capturing Globalization Stephen Hobden Edited by James H Mittelman and Norani Othman 6 Equivalence in Comparative Politics Edited by Jan W. van Deth 15 Uncertain Europe Building a new European security 7 The Politics of Central Banks order? Robert Elgie and Helen Thompson Edited by Martin A Smith and Graham Timmins 8 Politics and Globalisation Knowledge, ethics and agency 16 Power, Postcolonialism and Martin Shaw International Relations Reading race, gender and class 9 History and International Relations Edited by Geeta Chowdhry and Sheila Thomas W. Smith Nair 17 Constituting Human Rights 27 Africa in International Politics Global civil society and the society of External involvement on the continent democratic states Edited by Ian Taylor and Paul Mervyn Frost Williams 18 US Economic Statecraft for Survival 28 Global Governmentality 1933–1991 Governing international spaces Of sanctions, embargoes and economic Edited by Wendy Larner and William warfare Walters Alan P. Dobson 29 Political Learning and Citizenship 19 The EU and NATO Enlargement Education Under Confl ict Richard McAllister and Roland The political socialization of Israeli Dannreuther and Palestinian youngsters Orit Ichilov 20 Spatializing International Politics Analysing activism on the internet 30 Gender and Civil Society Jayne Rodgers Transcending boundaries Edited by Jude Howell and Diane 21 Ethnonationalism in the Mulligan Contemporary World Walker Connor and the study of 31 State Crises, Globalisation and nationalism National movements in North–East Edited by Daniele Conversi Africa The Horn’s dilemma 22 Meaning and International Edited by Asafa Jalata Relations Edited by Peter Mandaville and 32 Diplomacy and Developing Nations Andrew Williams Post-Cold War foreign policy-making structures and processes 23 Political Loyalty and the Nation- Edited by Justin Robertson and State Maurice A. East Edited by Michael Waller and Andrew Linklater 33 Autonomy, Self-governance and Confl ict Resolution 24 Russian Foreign Policy and the CIS Innovative approaches to institutional Theories, debates and actions design in divided societies Nicole J. Jackson Edited by Marc Weller and Stefan Wolff 25 Asia and Europe Development and different dimensions 34 Mediating International Crises of ASEM Jonathan Wilkenfeld, Kathleen J. Yeo Lay Hwee Young, David M. Quinn and Victor Asal 26 Global Instability and Strategic Crisis 35 Postcolonial Politics, The Internet Neville Brown and Everyday Life Pacifi c traversals online M. I. Franklin 36 Reconstituting the Global Liberal 46 Globalization and Religious Order Nationalism in India Legitimacy and regulation The search for ontological security Kanishka Jayasuriya Catrina Kinnvall 37 International Relations, Security 47 Culture and International Relations and Jeremy Bentham Narratives, natives and tourists Gunhild Hoogensen Julie Reeves 38 Interregionalism and International 48 Global Civil Society Relations Contested futures Edited by Heiner Hänggi, Ralf Roloff Edited by Gideon Baker and David and Jürgen Rüland Chandler 39 The International Criminal Court 49 Rethinking Ethical Foreign Policy A global civil society achievement Pitfalls, possibilities and paradoxes Marlies Glasius Edited by David Chandler and Volker Heins 40 A Human Security Doctrine for Europe 50 International Cooperation and Project, principles, practicalities Arctic Governance Edited by Marlies Glasius and Mary Regime effectiveness and northern Kaldor region building Edited by Olav Schram Stokke and 41 The History and Politics of UN Geir Hønneland Security Council Reform Dimitris Bourantonis 51 Human Security Concepts and implications 42 Russia and NATO Since 1991 Shahrbanou Tadjbakhsh and From Cold War through cold peace to Anuradha Chenoy partnership? Martin A. Smith 52 International Relations and Security in the Digital Age 43 The Politics of Protection Edited by Johan Eriksson and Sites of insecurity and political agency Giampiero Giacomello Edited by Jef Huysmans, Andrew Dobson and Raia Prokhovnik 53 State-Building Theory and practice 44 International Relations in Europe Edited by Aidan Hehir and Neil Traditions, perspectives and Robinson destinations Edited by Knud Erik Jørgensen and 54 Violence and Non-Violence in Africa Tonny Brems Knudsen Edited by Pal Ahluwalia, Louise Bethlehem and Ruth Ginio 45 The Empire of Security and the Safety of the People 55 Developing Countries and Global Edited by William Bain Trade Negotiations Edited by Larry Crump and S. 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MacDonald 59 Globalization, Prostitution and Sex- 65 Globalisation, Public Opinion and traffi cking the State Corporeal politics Western Europe and East and Elina Penttinen Southeast Asia Edited by Takashi Inoguchi and Ian 60 Peacebuilding Marsh Women in international perspective Elisabeth Porter 66 Urbicide The politics of urban destruction 61 Ethics, Liberalism and Realism in Martin Coward International Relations Mark D. Gismondi Urbicide The politics of urban destruction Martin Coward First published 2009 by Routledge 2 Park Square, Milton Park, Abingdon, Oxon, OX14 4RN Simultaneously published in the USA and Canada by Routledge 270 Madison Avenue, New York, NY 10016 Routledge is an imprint of the Taylor & Francis Group, an informa business This edition published in the Taylor & Francis e-Library, 2008. “To purchase your own copy of this or any of Taylor & Francis or Routledge’s collection of thousands of eBooks please go to www.eBookstore.tandf.co.uk.” © 2009 Martin Coward All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reprinted or reproduced or utilised in any form or by any electronic, mechanical, or other means, now known or hereafter invented, including photocopying and recording, or in any information storage or retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publishers. British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library Library of Congress Cataloging in Publication Data A catalog record for this book has been requested ISBN 0-203-89063-9 Master e-book ISBN ISBN 10: 0-415-46131-6 (hbk) ISBN 10: 0-203-89063-9 (ebk) ISBN 13: 978-0-415-46131-3 (hbk) ISBN 13: 978-0-203-89063-9 (ebk) For Alis and Erin Contents Preface and acknowledgments xii Introduction: The destruction of shared space 1 1 Interpreting destruction of the built environment 17 2 The logic of urbicide 35 3 The built environment and shared spatiality 54 4 The nature of heterogeneity: From Mitsein to the inoperative community 72 5 The political stakes of urbicide 91 6 The conceptual stakes of urbicide 108 Conclusion 122 Notes 138 Bibliography 147 Index 156 Preface and acknowledgments Theory and the political gesture In the preface to When Victims Become Killers, Mahmood Mamdani criticises
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