Who is considered an aggressor in a conflict?

The person who is identified as the aggressor in a conflict is typically the one who first employs hostile force. This means that the aggressor initiates the conflict through actions that are intended to cause harm or provoke a response from another party. Understanding this definition is crucial because it sets the context for recognizing how conflicts escalate and the roles individuals play within them. An aggressor often bears responsibility for the conflict's emergence since they are the ones who take the initial aggressive action, while the responses from others may or may not escalate the situation further.

In contrast, mediation involves seeking resolution without aggression, making it clear that the one seeking assistance isn’t taking an aggressive role. The individual who escalates a fight could be responding to provocation or aggression from another party, which complicates the definition of aggression. Similarly, a person responding to an attack may be acting in self-defense rather than exhibiting aggression; they are reacting to a hostile action rather than instigating it. Thus, the context in which the first hostile force is employed clearly positions that individual as the aggressor in a conflict.