International Committee of the Red Cross

@icrc.org

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100 countries, 1 humanitarian mission: to promote respect for the laws of war #IHL and help people caught up in armed conflicts and violence. Community guidelines: https://www.icrc.org/en/community-guidelines

Tonga is the 100th country to join the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons. Joining this treaty is a victory for humanity against the most abhorrent weapon imaginable.
DR Congo | After being shot in North Kivu last year, Kaseraka Grace underwent a leg amputation. Today, he is rebuilding his life in Ituri. With a prosthesis from the ICRC-supported Rwankole Physical Rehabilitation Centre, Kaseraka can walk again. We also provided him with cash assistance to help him develop a source of income.
civilians are not a target
After 10 years in Suwayda, Abu Ahmad, a father of three, returned with his family to their home in Tal Brak, northern Hasakeh. Together with the Syrian Arab Red Crescent, we supported his family and 128 others through our farmers' grant programme, providing a 3,000-watt solar power system, a sprinkler irrigation network, and a cash grant to help them resume farming after years of interruption.
Neutrality means we are on the side of humanity. We take action, never sides.
Why is the ICRC “silent”? We talk, and we talk a lot, but sometimes, we do it confidentially and bilaterally. This means that not all our discussions, conversations, or even calls to respect international humanitarian law with parties to conflicts, States, and other stakeholders are public. If you don't read about our work here, it doesn't mean we are not advocating for the people affected by armed conflicts. We often work discreetly to gain and maintain access to those who need us most.
On the front line for humanity
Today we supported the repatriation of human remains of fallen soldiers between Russia and Ukraine, as agreed by the parties to the conflict. These repatriations are an important humanitarian step to ensure the deceased are treated with dignity and respect. They enable identification and provision of answers to relatives who are waiting for news, while allowing families to lay their loved ones to rest in accordance with their wishes and traditions. We remain committed to supporting efforts that uphold the dignity of the deceased.
Before, I had to crawl on the ground to move around, and I was unable to work. Today, thanks to my tricycle, I can run my business and provide for my family.” Kisembo Kalepe Displaced person in Bunia, Ituri
Fataki Zawadi fled DR Congo with his seven children and arrived at Kansega transit camp, Burundi, in December 2025. During their relocation to Busuma, he became separated from his 16-year-old daughter, Loria Charlotte. For more than two months, he did not know where she was. With the support of the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement, they were reunited this year. But the family still struggles to access food, shelter, water, healthcare and education, as many other Congolese refugees.
Call for Papers: “Protection of Civilians and International Humanitarian Law in the Age of Artificial Intelligence”
They are not targets. They are not soldiers. They are not weapons. They are just children. Congolese refugee children at Busuma Camp in Burundi. Credit: Hugh Kinsella Cunningham for the ICRC.
Lebanon | Rita is a midwife in Tyre. She sent her 13-year-old son to a safer area with his father, while she stayed behind to care for people who had nowhere else to turn. As hundreds of thousands of people were displaced across Lebanon, uncertainty became part of daily life. Through it all, Rita held on to one hope: to return home and live in safety once again.
Today, we join families mourning the loss of their loved ones in Srebrenica 31 years ago. In July 1995, 8,372 people were killed and thousands were displaced. Among them were 9 ICRC employees, who were later found in mass graves. Our thoughts are with the thousands of families who have lost loved ones or continue to search for those who remain missing.
War doesn't care whether the intelligence is artificial or not. The consequences are real. We have identified three military uses of AI that raise serious humanitarian concerns.
What does it mean that our humanitarian action is impartial, neutral and independent? It means we offer our support without discrimination. We do not take part in political, religious, or any other type of controversy. We work with others, but we do not act on behalf of any government, business or external organization.
Pakistan | Together with the Pakistan Red Crescent Society, we supported the distribution of food packages to 2,250 vulnerable displaced households in Landi Kotal, Khyber. This assistance helps families meet their immediate food needs and ease some of the challenges they are facing due to recent cross-border hostilities.
Mali | In areas affected by armed violence, many families are struggling to protect their livelihoods and prepare for the farming season. To support vulnerable farmers, we have provided nearly 60 tonnes of seeds to the regional agriculture office in Mopti. Earlier this year, we also provided 37.5 tonnes of rice seed to the Gao regional agriculture office and supported 1,500 families in Timbuktu with cash to buy feed for their livestock. Learn more: Mali: ICRC steps up support to people affected by armed violence
When cities are bombed, shelled, hit by airstrikes, rockets, or artillery fire, it’s the civilians who suffer. Heavy explosive weapons shouldn't be used in cities.
Faster decisions in war do not always mean safer outcomes for civilians. As AI is increasingly used in military operations, it can raise serious risks when life-or-death decisions depend on systems that may be unpredictable, biased, or difficult to control. Read more
For more than 30 years, not a single day passed without Anesia thinking about her son, whom she lost contact with during the armed conflict in Burundi in 1994. For decades, she carried the hope that one day she would hear his voice again. Recently, that hope became reality. We were able to locate her son and reconnect them through an emotional phone call, which was their first contact in over three decades. It was the beginning of a long-awaited family reunification after years of separation, uncertainty, and the pain of war. This moment was made possible thanks to the dedication and close collaboration of our teams, together with the Red Cross National Societies of Uganda and Burundi.
Nigeria | For Zainab, planting a tree was a way to honour her missing child, keep his memory alive, and hold on to hope. In Damaturu, families of the missing marked the completion of their Mental Health and Psychosocial Support counselling circle by planting blackcurrant trees.
ICRC response in Venezuela
As hostilities intensify, civilians continue to bear an ever-heavier burden. Essential assistance can alleviate suffering and support recovery, but it cannot reverse the tragic loss of human life. International humanitarian law requires the parties to the conflict to take constant care to spare civilians and civilian objects.”
Sudan | In Al Obeid, North Kordofan, families are facing growing daily hardships amid the loss of essential services. Together with the Sudanese Red Crescent Society, we are scaling up our humanitarian assistance to help people meet their most urgent needs. We have distributed a month’s worth of food to more than 42,000 people across camps and urban settlements. In the coming weeks, we will also distribute nutritional supplements to more than 7,000 children, as well as pregnant and breastfeeding women.
In Al Obeid, in North Kordofan, communities are experiencing increasing hardship following a recent escalation of hostilities around the city, adding new pressure to an already fragile humanitarian situation. Many people have endured months of displacement, uncertainty and repeated disruptions to essential services, making it increasingly difficult to access safe water, healthcare and other basic needs. For families already struggling to cope with the consequences of the armed conflict, the loss of these critical services further deepens vulnerabilities and compounds daily challenges.
In Mazar-e-Sharif, Afghanistan | Our teams from @ICRC_af, together with the Afghan Red Crescent Society, reached 400 pregnant and breastfeeding women with cash assistance, offering a small but vital lifeline in a moment of hardship. Seeing your children hungry is one of the most heartbreaking experiences a mother can endure. This support helps ease that burden, helping families meet their most immediate needs and regain a measure of stability in difficult circumstances.
Burundi | Maryam is one of more than 80,000 Congolese refugees who fled the Democratic Republic of the Congo and sought safety in Burundi. Separated from her family as she escaped the fighting, she was finally able to reconnect with her aunt through a Red Cross connectivity centre. But life in the camp remains difficult.
Paktia, Afghanistan
On 24 June, powerful earthquakes struck the country, leaving many injured and thousands missing. As communities face the devastating consequences, a coordinated humanitarian response is critical. We are supporting the Venezuelan Red Cross and local authorities to deliver life-saving humanitarian assistance to people affected by the earthquakes.
Time doesn’t heal. Only answers do. The families of the missing have the right to know what happened and where their loved ones are.
Ethiopia | In Amhara, Oromia and Tigray, communities continue to face the effects of conflict, climate shocks and difficult access to essential support. Ahead of the rainy season, together with the Ethiopian Red Cross Society, we supported 132,000 farmers and family members with seeds and fertilizers. This support helps families sustain their agricultural activities and preserve their livelihoods where needs are greatest. Learn more: The sq version is ready in the same link
We are devastated by the deaths of Byamungu Mugisho Kabuha and Mugisho Mparanya Romain, two volunteers with the DRC Red Cross Society, who were killed on 16 June in South Kivu while working to improve access to safe drinking water for communities in conflict-affected areas. We mourn this tragic loss, and our thoughts are with their loved ones and with the DRC Red Cross Society during this difficult time. The DRC Red Cross plays an indispensable role in responding to armed conflict and public health emergencies across eastern DRC. To preserve a lifeline for the communities they serve, humanitarian personnel must be respected and protected. Acts of violence against them are strictly prohibited. Weapon bearers must take all feasible steps to ensure their safety.
Torture is prohibited. Torture and all other forms of cruel, inhuman, degrading, or humiliating treatment are universally prohibited everywhere and under all circumstances. This absolute ban underscores that no political, economic, security, cultural, or religious arguments can ever justify such practices. The suffering that these practices cause on their victims can last for years.
First, you lose your home. Then, on the road to safety, you lose sight of the people you love. In armed conflict-affected areas, our teams are there to help families reconnect. Every call matters. Every message carries hope.
Have you lost contact with your family as a result of a humanitarian crisis, such as armed conflict, disaster or migration? The International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement can help you. Our service is free, and all your information will be kept safe. Learn more at: https://familylinks.icrc.org/
Syria | When Mohammed, 22, lost his leg during the conflict, he spent months without work or income. Together with the Syrian Arab Red Crescent, we provided him with a prosthetic limb, and through our livelihoods programme, he was able to rebuild his tailoring work.
On 24 June 1859, Henry Dunant witnessed the horrors of the Battle of Solferino in Italy. Thousands of wounded soldiers were left without adequate care. Dunant helped organize relief for them and later wrote "A Memory of Solferino", calling for better care for wounded soldiers and national relief societies to support military medical services in wartime. In 1863, he became one of the five members of the committee that would later become the ICRC. More than 160 years later, Solferino still reminds us: even in war, humanity must be protected.
International humanitarian law (IHL) is clear: These infrastructures provide essential services to civilians and must be protected. All feasible precautions must be taken to spare them.
Burundi | Chibalonza fled the Democratic Republic of the Congo with her children, carrying them through fear, loss and displacement. Today, in Musenyi camp, she fears they may not have enough food to survive. Burundi now hosts more than 145,000 Congolese refugees, many of whom live in camps. Last year, more than 1.2 million people from the DRC fled across borders, with more than half now in Uganda and Burundi.
Civilians cannot be targeted. Civilians cannot be used as human shields. Civilians must have safe passage to flee. Humanitarian organizations must have access to deliver aid to civilians.
Our teams recently delivered more than 18 metric tonnes of humanitarian supplies to the Iranian Red Crescent Society (IRCS) to support emergency response.
Today, we participated in the repatriation of fallen soldiers from Russia and Ukraine at the request of the parties to the conflict. These operations are an important humanitarian step to ensure the deceased are treated with dignity and respect. They enable identification and provision of answers to relatives who are waiting for news, while allowing families to lay their loved ones to rest in accordance with their wishes and traditions. We remain committed to support any action that respects the dignity of the deceased and their families. Our teams continue to support families seeking for answers. Families have a right to know the fate of their relatives, including where they are.
Thousands of families who have fled the armed conflict in Sudan are now living in camps.
In northern Hassakeh, Syria, farmers are facing challenges linked to water shortages, electricity cuts, and rising farming costs. Fahad, a father of two, is one of 129 families who received solar panels, sprinkler irrigation systems, and cash support for ploughing through an @ICRC and @SYRedCrescent initiative.
A single moment. A lifetime of consequences. Sexual violence in armed conflict keeps rising, affecting millions. The harm not only impact victims/survivors but their families and communities over multiple generations
ICRC’s team on the front line for humanity! We are 18,000 professionals working in 90 countries to help people suffering the devastating effects of armed conflict and promote the rules of war.
Humanitarian workers must be protected
Before every act in war, remember the faces behind the consequences.
I arrived in Bunia on foot after fleeing the violence in Bule. Without my prosthesis, I would never have been able to make it this far.”
We are heartbroken by the death of Ahmed Yaquob Osman, a volunteer from the Sudanese Red Crescent Society who was killed while supporting communities in El Obeid, North Kordofan State. Our deepest condolences go out to his family, friends, and colleagues, as well as to the Sudanese Red Crescent Society. This marks yet another tragic loss among our colleagues and fellow Sudanese humanitarian workers since last year. Each humanitarian worker killed is more than a statistic. Every death is a profound loss for a family, a community, and the humanitarian mission they served with courage and dedication. We must not allow these tragedies to become normalized. Humanitarian workers are members of the communities they serve, working tirelessly to provide protection, assistance, and hope, often at great personal risk. The continued loss of humanitarian workers is unacceptable. Weapon bearers must do all they can to ensure their safety and uphold the principles that enable humanitarian assistance to reach those who need it most.
Ukraine | For Viktor, using a prosthesis for the first time was a life-changing moment. He is patient at the ICRC-supported Prosthetics and Orthotics Laboratory at the University Hospital in Kharkiv
Mali: ICRC strengthens its support for people affected by armed violence 
Cultural property and places of worship are not a target. International humanitarian law is clear: Even during wars, museums, libraries, places of worship, archaeological sites, and historic monuments are protected.
Families of missing persons in Honduras are pushing for a law to protect the rights of their loved ones. We are supporting them through technical advisory assistance.
Civilians must be protected and respected, always. Parties to conflicts are the only ones with enough power to enforce the rules of war, transform them into reality, and save lives.
No one should have to walk past an explosive weapon to reach home. Civilians should not inherit the dangers of yesterday’s wars.