World Humanitarian Day 2015
Every year on 19 August, the international community marks World Humanitarian Day in recognition of aid workers who have lost their lives in the course of their duty. It is also a day to celebrate …
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Yemen: The dead must be collected and treated with respect
Geneva / Sana'a – The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) is extremely concerned about the number of dead bodies accumulating in the areas where fighting has been most intense in Yemen. …
Syria: Support for dialysis saves lives
Every month, the dialysis centre in Homs receives nearly 100 patients with kidney problems. Amidst ongoing conflict in Syria, the daily health problems of thousands of Syrians have dropped off the …
Battling typhus: The ICRC in Poland, 1921
This fascinating 15-minute silent film shows different aspects of the ICRC's work in Poland with Save the Children, focusing on their efforts to eradicate typhus. The film includes footage of …
Australia: 4th Commonwealth Red Cross and Red Crescent Conference on IHL
From 20-23 July, representatives from more than 35 Commonwealth Member States and National Societies gathered in Canberra for the Fourth Commonwealth Red Cross Red Crescent Conference on …
Protecting cultural property in armed conflict
ICRC speaks with Anna Segall, Legal Adviser and Director, Office of International Standards and Legal Affairs, UNESCO, about protecting cultural property in armed conflict, at the Fourth Commonwealth …
Water and sanitation course: From emergency towards development.
This course will train engineers and scientists to plan, implement and monitor emergency water and sanitation programmes, and will help them better understand the organizational context of …
Weapons: ICRC sounds alarm on arms trade
24-08-2015 Geneva/Cancun, Mexico - The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) has voiced concern that many countries are still involved in illegal arms transfers despite having committed …
ICRC sounds alarm on arms trade
At the first conference of States Parties to the Arms Trade Treaty, in Cancun, Mexico (24-27 August), the International Committee of Red Cross says the irresponsible transfer of weapons is rife. …
ICRC Director General Yves Daccord on the challenges we face
Just as armed conflict and violence have no single cause, so there is no single or perfect humanitarian response. So says Yves Daccord, the ICRC's Director-General, in a guest blog for the United …
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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.