Lost in a maze: the footprints left behind
The experience of having a missing family member is unique and can only be truly understood by those who have experienced it. For more than 30 years, we have been hearing from thousands of people who …
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Colombia: Humanitarian Report 2024
The civilian population continues to bear the brunt of the war. We wish that the figures we report here for humanitarian consequences belonged to the distant past. However, these figures reflect the …
Wars have limits that must be respected
Given the multiple armed conflicts around the world today, public debate about the rules governing wars is more relevant than ever. What are the limits to wars? What can be done to prevent human …
Colombia: Communities tell their stories
Being on the side of the communities most affected by armed conflict and violence means building projects together. During 2023, we worked side by side with those who trusted our teams on the ground. …
Colombia: Rights do not end behind bars
The issue of overcrowding in national detention facilities continued to increase during 2023 and reached 24.5 per cent at the end of the year. This means that the prison population exceeds capacity …
Afghanistan: Families struck by tragedy find financial stability and hope through microeconomic initiatives
Life-disrupting injuries because of unexploded ordnance, death of a loved one, financial strain, psychological trauma and fear of the future – Sayed Reza, Muzhda Ahmadi and Abdullah Amiri have …
Children and War: The Impact of Weapon Contamination in Iraq
Children are especially vulnerable to the dangers of war remnants. Over 519 children have been killed or injured in Iraq between 2017-2022 from explosive ordnance. (According to UNICEF). Shujaa and …
Mine Awareness Day: Deaths of 9 Afghan children underscore the ongoing danger from unexploded ordnance
Geneva (ICRC) – On the occasion of the International Day for Mine Awareness and Assistance in Mine Action on 4 April, Erik Tollefsen, the head of the weapons contamination unit for the International …
Honduras Editorial: "a decade of promoting humanity in detention"
By Guela Sekhniachvili, head of the ICRC's mission in Honduras Humanity should know no bounds. Even in prisons, people must be treated with dignity, regardless of the reason they were incarcerated. …
El Salvador Editorial: "Protecting humanitarian action: A shared commitment"
By Karim Khallaayoun, head of the ICRC's mission in El Salvador In 2023, millions of people around the world faced a complex situation resulting from natural disasters, migration and poverty, but …
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ICRC library
Created in 1863, the ICRC library, alongside the ICRC archives, provides an indispensable documentary reference on the organization itself and international humanitarian law.
IHL treaties
International humanitarian law is based on a number of treaties, in particular the Geneva Conventions of 1949 and their Additional Protocols, and a series of other instruments.
Customary IHL
Customary international humanitarian law consists of rules that come from "a general practice accepted as law" and that exist independent of treaty law.