Using the example of the 2004 interventions by the French NGO Premi?re Urgence in Komanda and Bafwasende in the Ituri region of the DRC, this paper attempts to provide a snapshot of the complexity of the issues and the difficulties faced by humanitarian intervention in areas under the control of armed militias. It also shows the actual work of UN security policy and the role that has been assigned to NGOs in post-9/11 peace making operations.