What air campaign was launched in 1999 to stop ethnic cleansing in Kosovo?

Operation Allied Force was the air campaign launched in 1999 by NATO to address the humanitarian crisis resulting from the ethnic cleansing in Kosovo. This military intervention aimed to stop the atrocities committed against the ethnic Albanian population by Serbian forces, particularly during a time of escalating violence and displacement.

The campaign involved extensive airstrikes against strategic targets in Serbia and Kosovo, marking a significant use of air power in a humanitarian context without explicit UN Security Council authorization, emphasizing the controversial nature of the intervention. The operation successfully contributed to the eventual withdrawal of Serbian forces from Kosovo and helped pave the way for the establishment of a peacekeeping presence in the region.

In contrast, the other operations listed—like Operation Desert Storm, which was aimed at liberating Kuwait from Iraqi occupation, Operation Noble Eagle, focused on domestic air defense after the September 11 attacks, and Operation Southern Watch, aimed at enforcing no-fly zones over Iraq—did not relate to the situation in Kosovo and therefore are not relevant to the question of the 1999 air campaign.