Jordan: More Syrian refugees seeking shelter
Jordan, Mafraq. A Syrian refugee is doing an Iris registration and scanning at a bank, in order to receive cash assistance provided by the ICRC./CC BY-NC-ND/ICRC/Z. Arabyat With no solution to the …
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Iraq: Escaping unprecedented levels of horror
Since the outbreak of fighting in Al-Anbar region last December, the humanitarian situation in west and north Iraq has become extremely bad, particularly for displaced people. Minorities in …
Philippines: ICRC president stresses need to resolve plight of Zamboanga displaced
27-08-2014 Geneva/Manila (ICRC) – Peter Maurer, president of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), concluded his first official visit to the Philippines today. During his three-day …
Papua New Guinea: Families of missing persons must have answers
The 1989-1997 civil war in Bougainville, Papua New Guinea left as many as 20,000 dead. The fate and whereabouts of many who vanished following the outbreak of violence remain unknown. This causes …
Engaging with students and professors on the issue of sexual violence in armed conflicts - workshop
Group work on case studies from "How does law protect in war?" allows students to apply the Geneva Conventions to concrete issues related to sexual violence, such as criminal repression © ICRC / T. …
South Sudan: Combating the spread of cholera
Hand-in-hand with the South Sudan Red Cross, the ICRC is working to combat the spread of the disease in key locations, in particular those affected by recent violence. In this video we see how the …
Rules of war (in a nutshell)
People have always used violence to settle disputes. And all cultures have always had the idea that there have to be limits on that violence, if we are to prevent wars from descending into barbarity. …
"We all need to fight for limits in war. Act now!"
ICRC director-general Yves Daccord and director of international law and policy Helen Durham call for compliance with the law of war and an end to attacks on civilians, especially health workers. The …
Iraq: Civilians need help as they flee fighting
The cities of Dohuk and Khanik are overwhelmed with families who have fled the fighting in Sinjar and elsewhere in northern Iraq. Many of them spent days without food and water on Mount Sinjar before …
From our archives: Rules to limit suffering
1864: Protecting wounded and sick soldiers Ottoman Empire, Russo-Turkish war of 1877-78. First-aid post for wounded soldiers. The 1864 Geneva Convention stipulated that wounded soldiers and those …
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Customary international humanitarian law consists of rules that come from "a general practice accepted as law" and that exist independent of treaty law.