This agreement protects the full sanctity of all ICRC property in Switzerland including its headquarters and archive, grants members and staff legal immunity, exempts the ICRC from all taxes and fees, guarantees protected and duty-free transfer of goods, services, and money, provides the ICRC with secure communication privileges at the same level as foreign embassies, and simplifies Committee travel in and out of Switzerland. On the other hand, Switzerland does not recognize ICRC-issued passports. Contrary to popular belief, the ICRC is not a sovereign entity like the Sovereign Military Order of Malta. The ICRC limits its membership to Swiss nationals only, and also it does not have a policy of open and unrestricted membership for individuals as its new members are selected by the Committee itself (a process called cooptation).
Legal status
International Committee of the Red Cross
International Committee of the Red Cross | Legal status
A legal foundation was created by a formal agreement between the Swiss government and the ICRC. This agreement protects the full sanctity of all ICRC property in Switzerland including its headquarters and archive, grants members and staff legal immunity, exempts the ICRC from all taxes and fees, guarantees protected and duty-free transfer of goods, services, and money etc The legal mandate of the ICRC stems from the four Geneva Conventions of 1949, as well as its own Statutes. The ICRC is the only institution explicitly named in international humanitarian law as a controlling authority. It is the only institution explicitly named in international humanitarian law as a controlling authority and its legal mandate stems from the four Geneva Conventions of 1949, as well as its own Statutes
what happened after the earthquake in haiti 2010
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By 24 January 2010, at least 52 aftershocks measuring 4.5 or greater had been recorded. An estimated three million people were affected by the quake.
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what was the richter scale of it?
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catastrophic magnitude 7.0 M on the Moment magnitude scale
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how many casualties were there because of it?
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3 million people affected with a possible death toll of more than 316,000
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who were involved in rescue efforts?
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International Committee of the Red Cross
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who are they?
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a humanitarian organization based in Geneva, Switzerland
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what was their role in the holocaust?
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By taking part in the 1995 ceremony to commemorate the liberation of the Auschwitz concentration camp, the President of the ICRC, Cornelio Sommaruga, paid tribute to all those who had suffered or lost their lives during the war and publicly regretted the past mistakes and shortcomings of the Red Cross with regard to the victims of the concentration camps.
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how do they raise their fund?
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Through donations as: an annual "Headquarters Appeal" to cover its internal costs and "Emergency Appeals" for its individual missions.
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describe some of their characteristics?
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The original motto of the International Committee of the Red Cross was "Inter Arma Caritas" ("Amidst War, Charity"). It has three official languages - English, French and Spanish. The official symbol is the Red Cross on white background with the words "COMITE INTERNATIONAL GENEVE"
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what is their legal status?
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However, since the early 1990s, the ICRC employs persons from all over the world to serve in its field mission and at Headquarters. In 2007, almost half of ICRC staff was non-Swiss. The ICRC has special privileges and legal immunities in many countries, based on national law in these countries, based on agreements between the ICRC and the respective governments, or, in some cases, based on international jurisprudence (such as the right of ICRC delegates not to bear witness in front of international tribunals).
International Committee of the Red Cross | Legal status
The ICRC is the only institution explicitly named in international humanitarian law as a controlling authority. The legal mandate of the ICRC stems from the four Geneva Conventions of 1949, as well as its own Statutes. The ICRC also undertakes tasks that are not specifically mandated by law, such as visiting political prisoners outside of conflict and providing relief in natural disasters. The ICRC is a private Swiss association that has enjoyed various degrees of special privileges and legal immunities within the territory of Switzerland for many years. On 19 March 1993, a legal foundation for this special treatment was created by a formal agreement between the Swiss government and the ICRC.
International Committee of the Red Cross | Legal status
This agreement protects the full sanctity of all ICRC property in Switzerland including its headquarters and archive, grants members and staff legal immunity, exempts the ICRC from all taxes and fees, guarantees protected and duty-free transfer of goods, services, and money, provides the ICRC with secure communication privileges at the same level as foreign embassies, and simplifies Committee travel in and out of Switzerland. On the other hand, Switzerland does not recognize ICRC-issued passports. Contrary to popular belief, the ICRC is not a sovereign entity like the Sovereign Military Order of Malta. The ICRC limits its membership to Swiss nationals only, and also it does not have a policy of open and unrestricted membership for individuals as its new members are selected by the Committee itself (a process called cooptation).
International Committee of the Red Cross | Legal status
The Third Geneva Convention concerns the treatment of prisoners of war. The Fourth Geneva Convention concerns the protection of civilians in time of war. In addition, there are many more customary international laws that come into effect when necessary.
International Committee of the Red Cross | Legal Basis
The International Committee of the Red Cross 1958 Commentary on 1949 Geneva Convention IV Relative to the Protection of Civilian Persons in Time of War states: "Every person in enemy hands must have some status under international law: he is either a prisoner of war and, as such, covered by the Third Convention, a civilian covered by the Fourth Convention, or again, a member of the medical personnel of the armed forces who is covered by the First Convention. There is no intermediate status; nobody in enemy hands can be outside the law. We feel that this is a satisfactory solution – not only satisfying to the mind, but also, and above all, satisfactory from the humanitarian point of view." The ICRC has expressed the opinion that "If civilians directly engage in hostilities, they are considered 'unlawful' or 'unprivileged' combatants or belligerents (the treaties of humanitarian law do not expressly contain these terms).
Civilian | Legal usage in war
The original motto of the International Committee of the Red Cross was "Inter Arma Caritas" ("Amidst War, Charity"). It has preserved this motto while other Red Cross organizations have adopted others. Due to Geneva's location in the French-speaking part of Switzerland, the ICRC is also known under its initial French name "Comité international de la Croix-Rouge" (CICR). However, the ICRC has three official languages (English, French and Spanish). The official symbol of the ICRC is the Red Cross on white background (the inverse of the Swiss flag) with the words "COMITE INTERNATIONAL GENEVE" circling the cross. Under the Geneva Convention, the red cross, red crescent and red crystal emblems provide protection for military medical services and relief workers in armed conflicts and is to be placed on humanitarian and medical vehicles and buildings.
International Committee of the Red Cross | Characteristics
This view has been rejected by the International Court of Justice and the International Committee of the Red Cross.
Beitar Illit | Status under international law
The ICRC's operations are generally based on international humanitarian law, primarily comprising the four Geneva Conventions of 1949, their two Additional Protocols of 1977 and Additional Protocol III of 2005, the Statutes of the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement, and the resolutions of the International Conferences of the Red Cross and Red Crescent. International humanitarian law is founded upon the Geneva conventions, the first of which was signed in 1864 by 16 countries. The First Geneva Convention of 1949 covers the protection for the wounded and sick of armed conflict on land. The Second Geneva Convention asks for the protection and care for the wounded, sick and shipwrecked of armed conflict at sea.
International Committee of the Red Cross | Legal Basis
The ICRC is the only institution explicitly named under international humanitarian law as a controlling authority. The legal mandate of the ICRC stems from the four Geneva Conventions of 1949, as well as from its own Statutes.
International humanitarian law | International Committee of the Red Cross
The International Committee of the Red Cross has stated that, "Every person in enemy hands must have some status under international law: he is either a prisoner of war and, as such, covered by the Third Convention, a civilian covered by the Fourth Convention, [or] a member of the medical personnel of the armed forces who is covered by the First Convention. There is no intermediate status; nobody in enemy hands can fall outside the law." Thus, if the detainees are not classified as prisoners of war, this would still grant them the rights of the Fourth Geneva Convention, as opposed to the more common Third Geneva Convention, which deals exclusively with prisoners of war.
Guantanamo Bay detention camp | International law
This view has been rejected by the International Court of Justice, the International Committee of the Red Cross and United Nations bodies.
Ofra | Status under international law
The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) holds that the establishment of Israeli settlements violate Fourth Geneva Convention. The ICRC also holds that the displacement of Palestinians that may occur due to the settlements also violates Article 49 of the Fourth Geneva Convention.
International law and Israeli settlements | International Committee of the Red Cross
To further ensure a legally-sound internationally-functioning organization, the Order has encouraged its various jurisdictions to ensure their legal status within the country they function and enter into a Memorandum of Association with the International Hospitaller Foundation.
Order of Saint Lazarus (statuted 1910) | Present legal status
The international community has formally entrusted the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) with the role of guardian of international humanitarian law. That includes a watchdog function by which it takes direct action to encourage parties to armed conflict to comply with international humanitarian law. The head of the International Red Cross delegation to Israel and the Occupied Territories stated that the establishment of Israeli settlements in the occupied territories is a grave breach of the Geneva Conventions that constitute war crime.
Israeli-occupied territories | International views
The European Commissioner for Justice, Franco Frattini, felt it "might not be appropriate" to include communist symbols in the context of discussions on xenophobia and anti-Semitism.
Red star | Legal status
In 1939 a ministerial order establishing the society was made under the 1938 act. Minor amendments of the 1939 order were made in subsequent decades. The 1938 act's provision were based on the first three Geneva Conventions, and the act was amended in 1954 and 1998 to reflect the state's accession to the 1949 Fourth Geneva Convention and 1977 Protocol I and Protocol II additions.
Irish Red Cross | Legal establishment
The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC; ) is a humanitarian organization based in Geneva, Switzerland, and a three-time Nobel Prize Laureate. State parties (signatories) to the Geneva Convention of 1949 and its Additional Protocols of 1977 (Protocol I, Protocol II) and 2005 have given the ICRC a mandate to protect victims of international and internal armed conflicts. Such victims include war wounded, prisoners, refugees, civilians, and other non-combatants. The ICRC is part of the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement, along with the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) and 192 National Societies.
International Committee of the Red Cross | Introduction
The international community considers Israeli settlements in the Israeli-occupied territories, including East Jerusalem, to violate the Fourth Geneva Convention's prohibition on the transfer of a civilian population into occupied territory and thus illegal under international law, but the Israeli government disputes this. Israel disputes that the Fourth Geneva Convention applies to these territories as they had not been legally held by a sovereign prior to Israel taking control of them. This view has been rejected by the International Court of Justice and the International Committee of the Red Cross.
Pisgat Ze'ev | Status under international law
A database of International Committee of the Red Cross' Customary IHL Study, developed in association with the British Red Cross, was launched by the International Committee of the Red Cross in August 2011. It is designed to be used as a legal reference in international and non-international armed conflicts, including by courts, tribunals and international organizations. The database is updated on a regular basis. A selection of national practice of 30 countries was added in March 2011 followed by an additional 27 countries in November of the same year. On 13 December 2012, the ICRC made available its updated collection and analysis of what it considers practice from 23 countries – Argentina, Bangladesh, Belgium, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Burundi, Chad, Chile, Colombia, Croatia, Djibouti, El Salvador, Guatemala, the Islamic Republic of Iran, Japan, Mexico, Peru, Serbia, Serbia and Montenegro, Senegal, Spain, Switzerland, Uruguay, and Viet Nam.
Customary international humanitarian law | ICRC's customary international humanitarian law database
The agreement protects the full sanctity of all ICRC property in Switzerland including its headquarters and archive, grants members and staff legal immunity, exempts the ICRC from all taxes and fees, guarantees the protected and duty-free transfer of goods, services, and money, provides the ICRC with secure communication privileges at the same level as foreign embassies, and simplifies Committee travel in and out of Switzerland.
International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement | After World War II
The library of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) - in French: "la bibliothèque du Comité international de la Croix-Rouge (CICR)" - is a public library based at the headquarter of the international organization in Geneva, Switzerland. It was apparently founded around the time of the ICRC's inception in 1863. The library in its self-description is ""the leading documentary resource"" on the ICRC in particular and International Humanitarian Law (IHL) in general, along with the ICRC Archives. It plays a central role for the mandate of the ICRC according to article 4 (g) of its statutes ""to work for the understanding and dissemination of knowledge of international humanitarian law applicable in armed conflicts and to prepare any development thereof"".
International Committee of the Red Cross Library | Introduction
The official mission statement says that: "The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) is an impartial, neutral, and independent organization whose independently humanitarian mission is to protect the lives and dignity of victims of war and internal violence and to provide them with assistance." It also conducts and coordinates international relief and works to promote and strengthen international humanitarian law and universal humanitarian principles. The core tasks of the committee, which are derived from the Geneva Conventions and its own statutes are: The ICRC drew up seven fundamental principles in 1965 that were adopted by the entire Red Cross Movement.
International Committee of the Red Cross | Mission
The original emblem that has a red cross on a white background is the exact reverse of the flag of neutral Switzerland. It was later supplemented by two others which are the Red Crescent, and the Red Crystal. The Red Crescent was adopted by the Ottoman Empire during the Russo-Turkish war and the Red Crystal by the governments in 2005, as an additional emblem devoid of any national, political or religious connotation.
International Committee of the Red Cross | Characteristics
Among other tasks, the General Assembly elects the secretary general. Between the convening of General Assemblies, the Governing Board is the leading body of the IFRC. It has the authority to make decisions for the IFRC in a number of areas. The Governing Board consists of the president and the vice presidents of the IFRC, the chairpersons of the Finance and Youth Commissions, and twenty elected representatives from national societies. The symbol of the IFRC is the combination of the Red Cross (left) and Red Crescent (right) on a white background surrounded by a red rectangular frame.
International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement | Legal status and organization
Italian Red Cross and Italy has an institutional cooperation for a long history under the supervision of the International Committee of the Red Cross.
Human rights in Italy | The international humanitarian law
The IFRC has its headquarters in Geneva. It also runs five zone offices (Africa, Americas, Asia Pacific, Europe, Middle East-North Africa), 14 permanent regional offices and has about 350 delegates in more than 60 delegations around the world. The legal basis for the work of the IFRC is its constitution. The executive body of the IFRC is a secretariat, led by a secretary general. The secretariat is supported by five divisions including "Programme Services", "Humanitarian values and humanitarian diplomacy", "National Society and Knowledge Development" and "Governance and Management Services". The highest decision making body of the IFRC is its General Assembly, which convenes every two years with delegates from all of the national societies.
International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement | Legal status and organization
(yet unpublished, paragraph 3 of the opinion of the Court; hereinafter – The Gaza Coast Regional Council Case). In the center of this public international law stand the Regulations Concerning the Laws and Customs of War on Land, The Hague, 18 October 1907 (hereinafter – The Hague Regulations). These regulations are a reflection of customary international law. The law of belligerent occupation is also laid out in IV Geneva Convention Relative to the Protection of Civilian Persons in Time of War 1949 (hereinafter – the Fourth Geneva Convention).
Status of territories occupied by Israel in 1967 | Israeli judicial decisions
When carrying out their humanitarian function during armed conflicts, medical personnel are protected persons under international humanitarian law, and are entitled under the laws of war to carry out their work without being inhibited; they may not be attacked, harmed, taken as prisoners of war or persecuted in any way; deliberately attacking or hindering medical personnel from performing their humanitarian work is a serious war crime. The same protection extends to buildings and vehicles identified as part of the medical service. The Army Medical Service uses the red cross as a protective sign recognised under the laws of war; the sign is used on buildings and vehicles and may be worn on armbands as needed.
Army Medical Service (Germany) | Status under international humanitarian law
The blockade has been criticized by former UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC) and other human rights organizations. The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) is the guardian of international humanitarian law, the law applicable in situations of armed conflict. This special role of the ICRC is now formally recognized in the Statutes of the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement, which have been adopted both by the components of the Movement and by the States party to the Geneva Conventions, that is, practically all the world's States. Article 5 of the Statutes states that the role of the ICRC is "to undertake the tasks incumbent upon it under the Geneva Conventions, to work for the faithful application of international humanitarian law applicable in armed conflicts and to take cognizance of any complaints based on alleged breaches of that law" (Article 5.2c), and also "to work for the understanding and dissemination of knowledge of international humanitarian law applicable in armed conflicts and to prepare any development thereof" (Article 5.2g).
Blockade of the Gaza Strip | Legal analyses
Personnel are issued identity cards identifying them as protected persons under the Geneva Conventions. Although personnel of the Army Medical Service are members of the armed forces and hold military ranks, they are considered non-combatants under international humanitarian law and thus enjoy protection and neutrality because of their humanitarian duties. The status of medical personnel as protected persons goes back to the 1864 Geneva Convention and was repeated in the subsequent Geneva Conventions of 1906 and 1929. It is currently set forth in the First, Second and Fourth Geneva Conventions of 1949, their additional protocols and is recognised under customary international humanitarian law, specifically by rules 25 and 26.
Army Medical Service (Germany) | Status under international humanitarian law
The international community considers Israeli settlements to be illegal under international law, violating the Fourth Geneva Convention's prohibition on transferring civilian population into territory held under military occupation. Israel disputes that East Jerusalem is occupied territory and rejects that settlements are illegal.
Ramat Shlomo | Political status
The ICRC is responsible for legally recognizing a relief society as an official national Red Cross or Red Crescent society and thus accepting it into the movement. The exact rules for recognition are defined in the statutes of the movement. After recognition by the ICRC, a national society is admitted as a member to the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (the Federation, or IFRC). The ICRC and the Federation cooperate with the individual national societies in their international missions, especially with human, material, and financial resources and organizing on-site logistics. According to the 1997 Seville Agreement, the ICRC is the lead Red Cross agency in conflicts while other organizations within the movement take the lead in non-war situations.
International Committee of the Red Cross | Responsibilities within the movement
The agreement protects the full sanctity of all ICRC property in Switzerland including its headquarters and archive, grants members and staff legal immunity, exempts the ICRC from all taxes and fees, guarantees the protected and duty-free transfer of goods, services, and money, provides the ICRC with secure communication privileges at the same level as foreign embassies, and simplifies Committee travel in and out of Switzerland. The ICRC continued its activities throughout the 1990s. It broke its customary media silence when it denounced the Rwandan genocide in 1994. It struggled to prevent the crimes that happened in and around Srebrenica in 1995 but admitted, "We must acknowledge that despite our efforts to help thousands of civilians forcibly expelled from the town and despite the dedication of our colleagues on the spot, the ICRC's impact on the unfolding of the tragedy was extremely limited." It went public once again in 2007 to decry "major human rights abuses" by Burma's military government including forced labour, starvation, and murder of men, women, and children.
International Committee of the Red Cross | After World War II
The international community considers Israeli settlements a violation of the Fourth Geneva Convention's prohibition on the transfer of an occupying power's civilian population into occupied territory and are as such illegal under international humanitarian law. Israel disputes that the Fourth Geneva Convention applies to the Palestinian territories as they had not been legally held by a sovereign prior to Israel taking control of them. Only the U.K. and Pakistan officially recognised the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan's annexation of the West Bank with all other members of the UN remaining uncommitted. This view has been rejected by the International Court of Justice and the International Committee of the Red Cross.
Alon Shvut | Legal status
The red cross, the red crescent and the red crystal are the protective signs recognised under international humanitarian law, and are used by military medical personnel and facilities for this purpose. Attacking military medical personnel, patients in their care, or medical facilities or transports legitimately marked as such is a war crime. Likewise, misusing these protective signs to mask military operations is the war crime of perfidy. Military medical personnel may be armed, usually with service pistols, for the purpose of self defense or the defense of patients.
Military medicine | Legal status
Since 1993, non-Swiss individuals have been allowed to serve as Committee delegates abroad, a task which was previously restricted to Swiss citizens. Indeed, since then, the share of staff without Swiss citizenship has increased to about 35%. On 16 October 1990, the UN General Assembly decided to grant the ICRC observer status for its assembly sessions and sub-committee meetings, the first observer status given to a private organization. The resolution was jointly proposed by 138 member states and introduced by the Italian ambassador, Vieri Traxler, in memory of the organization's origins in the Battle of Solferino. An agreement with the Swiss government signed on 19 March 1993, affirmed the already long-standing policy of full independence of the committee from any possible interference by Switzerland.
International Committee of the Red Cross | After World War II
The international community considers Israeli settlements to violate the Fourth Geneva Convention's prohibition on the transfer of an occupying power's civilian population into occupied territory. Israel disputes that the Fourth Geneva Convention applies to the Palestinian territories as they had not been legally held by a sovereign prior to Israel taking control of them. This view has been rejected by the International Court of Justice and the International Committee of the Red Cross.
Almon, Mateh Binyamin | Legal status
National Red Cross and Red Crescent societies exist in nearly every country in the world. Within their home country, they take on the duties and responsibilities of a national relief society as defined by International Humanitarian Law. Within the Movement, the ICRC is responsible for legally recognizing a relief society as an official national Red Cross or Red Crescent society. The exact rules for recognition are defined in the statutes of the Movement. Article 4 of these statutes contains the ""Conditions for recognition of National Societies."" Once a National Society has been recognized by the ICRC as a component of the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement (the Movement), it is in principle admitted to the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies in accordance with the terms defined in the Constitution and Rules of Procedure of the International Federation.
International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement | Official recognition
Although the Holy See, as distinct from the Vatican City State, does not fulfill the long-established criteria in international law of statehood; i.e. having a permanent population, a defined territory, a stable government and the capacity to enter into relations with other states; its possession of full legal personality in international law is evidenced by its diplomatic relations with 180 states, that it is a "member-state" in various intergovernmental international organizations, and that it is: "respected by the international community of sovereign States and treated as a subject of international law having the capacity to engage in diplomatic relations and to enter into binding agreements with one, several, or many states under international law that are largely geared to establish and preserving peace in the world." As Graham notes: This peculiar character of the Holy See in international law, as a non-territorial entity with a legal personality akin to that of states, has led professor Ian Brownlie to define it as a ""sui generis" entity".
Legal status of the Holy See | A "sui generis" entity possessing international personality
She was soon followed by the French historian and nazi hunter Serge Klarsfeld with his association of the" Sons and Daughters of Jews Deported from France". Already two years later he published a collection of documents from the archives about the internment and deportation of French Jews during WWII. In 1997, the archives adopted a new filing plan - B AI ("Services généraux – Archives institutionnelles") - which included computerized documents.
International Committee of the Red Cross archives | Post-Cold War
Failure to follow these requirements can result in the loss of protected status and make the individual violating the requirements a lawful target.
Law of war | Red Cross, Red Crescent, Magen David Adom, and the white flag
Still unaware of what would follow but hopeful that Dunant’s vision would bear fruit, the young Committee preserved this document and the ones that followed in order to account for their decisions and actions."" The actual address of the newly-founded Red Cross - and thus probably of its fledgling archives - became Dunant's private residence, the third floor of his family's "Maison Diodati" in the Old Town at Rue du Puits-Saint-Pierre 4. It remained there for the first few years. However, as Dunant's colonial businesses in Algeria collapsed, he declared bankruptcy in 1867 and was pushed out of the ICRC by its president Moynier in the following year.
International Committee of the Red Cross archives | Early Period
IPS is registered as an international not-for-profit association. It has 'general' NGO consultative status with ECOSOC at the United Nations, and the OECD status of "ODA eligible international organization".
Inter Press Service | Legal status
By virtue of its age and its special position under international humanitarian law, the ICRC is the lead agency in the Red Cross Movement, but it has weathered some power struggles within the movement. The ICRC has come into conflict with the Federation and certain national societies at various times. The American Red Cross threatened to supplant the ICRC with its creation of the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies as "a real international Red Cross" after the First World War. Elements of the Swedish Red Cross desired to supplant the Swiss authority of the ICRC after WWII.
International Committee of the Red Cross | Relationships within the movement
The Assembly (also called the Committee) convenes on a regular basis and is responsible for defining aims, guidelines, and strategies and for supervising the financial matters of the committee. The Assembly has a membership of a maximum of twenty-five Swiss citizens. Members must speak the house language of French, but many also speak English and German as well. These Assembly members are co-opted for a period of four years, and there is no limit to the number of terms an individual member can serve. A three-quarters majority vote from all members is required for re-election after the third term, which acts as a motivation for members to remain active and productive.
International Committee of the Red Cross | Assembly
In November 2012, Juan Pedro Schaerer, head of the International Committee of the Red Cross′s (ICRC) delegation for Israel and the Occupied Territories issued a statement on behalf of ICRC "in its role as guardian of international humanitarian law" in response to the Levy Report's "misrepresentation" of a "commentary published by the International Committee of the Red Cross on the Fourth Geneva Convention," which the Levy Report "uses to support the argument that the Israeli settlement project does not entail a breach of international humanitarian law". Quoting the Hague Regulations of 1907 according to which a "territory is considered occupied when it is actually placed under the authority of the hostile army" the ICRC statement clarifies that
Levy Report | International Committee of the Red Cross
Like all Israeli settlements in the Israeli-occupied territories, Tekoa is considered illegal under international law, though Israeli disputes this. The international community considers Israeli settlements to violate the Fourth Geneva Convention's prohibition on the transfer of an occupying power's civilian population into occupied territory. Israel disputes that the Fourth Geneva Convention applies to the Palestinian territories as they had not been legally held by a sovereign prior to Israel taking control of them. This view has been rejected by the International Court of Justice and the International Committee of the Red Cross.
Tekoa, Gush Etzion | Status under international law
Like all Israeli settlements in the Israeli-occupied territories, Har Gilo is considered illegal under international law, though Israeli disputes this. The international community considers Israeli settlements to violate the Fourth Geneva Convention's prohibition on the transfer of an occupying power's civilian population into occupied territory. Israel disputes that the Fourth Geneva Convention applies to the Palestinian territories as they had not been legally held by a sovereign prior to Israel taking control of them. This view has been rejected by the International Court of Justice and the International Committee of the Red Cross.
Har Gilo | Status under international law
The archives of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) are based in Geneva and were founded in 1863 at the time of the ICRC's inception. It has the dual function to manage both current records and historical archives. The general historical archives are openly accessible to the general public up to 1975. Along with the ICRC Library, the archives are widely considered to be the greatest repository for records on International Humanitarian Law (IHL). They have been dubbed by some researchers as ""the storehouses of sorrow"", since they preserve the memory of many millions of victims of armed conflicts as ""a legacy for mankind"".
International Committee of the Red Cross archives | Introduction
After the end of the war, the ICRC organized the return of about 420,000 prisoners to their home countries. In 1920, the task of repatriation was handed over to the newly founded League of Nations, which appointed the Norwegian diplomat and scientist Fridtjof Nansen as its "High Commissioner for Repatriation of the War Prisoners". His legal mandate was later extended to support and care for war refugees and displaced persons when his office became that of the League of Nations "High Commissioner for Refugees". Nansen, who invented the "Nansen passport" for stateless refugees and was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1922, appointed two delegates from the ICRC as his deputies.
International Committee of the Red Cross | World War I
The Red Cross service accepts Swiss citizens who are between 18 and 38 years old. This requires a professional training in healthcare or in the areas of international law, education or adult education (for teaching of International humanitarian law and Red Cross principles).
Red Cross service | Qualification
Since 1993, non-Swiss individuals have been allowed to serve as Committee delegates abroad, a task which was previously restricted to Swiss citizens. Indeed, since then, the share of staff without Swiss citizenship has increased to about 35%. On 16 October 1990, the UN General Assembly decided to grant the ICRC observer status for its assembly sessions and sub-committee meetings, the first observer status given to a private organization. The resolution was jointly proposed by 138 member states and introduced by the Italian ambassador, Vieri Traxler, in memory of the organization's origins in the Battle of Solferino. An agreement with the Swiss government signed on 19 March 1993, affirmed the already long-standing policy of full independence of the committee from any possible interference by Switzerland.
International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement | After World War II
Currently it exists under Law 852 of 2003 which rules the scope of the activities of the Colombian Red Cross and under Law 875 of 2004 which regulates the use of the emblem.
Colombian Red Cross | History
The legal basis of the work of the ICRC during World War II were the Geneva Conventions in their 1929 revision. The activities of the committee were similar to those during World War I: visiting and monitoring POW camps, organizing relief assistance for civilian populations, and administering the exchange of messages regarding prisoners and missing persons. By the end of the war, 179 delegates had conducted 12,750 visits to POW camps in 41 countries. The Central Information Agency on Prisoners-of-War ("Agence centrale des prisonniers de guerre") had a staff of 3,000, the card index tracking prisoners contained 45 million cards, and 120 million messages were exchanged by the Agency.
International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement | World War II
International humanitarian law defines the conduct and responsibilities of belligerent nations, neutral nations and individuals engaged in warfare, in relation to each other and to protected persons (usually meaning civilians). However the relevant treaties do not expressly envisage causes of action for victims in national or international law. Liesbeth Zegveld, a Dutch specialist in international humanitarian law, has drawn attention to their failure expressly to guarantee victims of violations of the law any right to a legal remedy. In order to seek redress for the death of their relatives, Hasan Nuhanović and the family of Rizo Mustafić, a UN electrician ordered by his employers to leave the Potočari base, have taken legal action in the Dutch civil courts, where they are represented by Liesbeth Zegveld.
Hasan Nuhanović | Legal proceedings against the Dutch State
The consolidation of the Senate Bill 3285 and House Bill 6509 was signed by President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, and is now known as Republic Act No. 10072 or The Philippine Red Cross Act of 2009. The law is an affirmation of the country's "conformity with the Geneva Conventions of 1949 and their additional protocols, and the Statutes of the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement," as well as a confirmation of Philippine Red Cross' stand as a "voluntary, independent and autonomous nongovernmental society auxiliary to the authorities of the Republic of the Philippines in the humanitarian field." Apart from the apparent change in the organization's name from "Philippine National Red Cross" to "Philippine Red Cross" - included in the Act's new provisions is the organizations' exemption from real property taxes, direct and indirect taxes, duties and fees that will emerge from its operations and its exclusive importations and purchases.
Philippine Red Cross | The Philippine Red Cross Act of 2009
The right to access the index is still strictly restricted to the ICRC. During the entire war, the ICRC monitored warring parties' compliance with the Geneva Conventions of the 1907 revision and forwarded complaints about violations to the respective country. When chemical weapons were used in this war for the first time in history, the ICRC vigorously protested against this new type of warfare. Even without having a mandate from the Geneva Conventions, the ICRC tried to ameliorate the suffering of civil populations. In territories that were officially designated as "occupied territories," the ICRC could assist the civilian population on the basis of the Hague Convention's "Laws and Customs of War on Land" of 1907.
International Committee of the Red Cross | World War I
Shortly after the beginning of the First World War in 1914, the ICRC under its president Gustave Ador decided to establish the International Prisoners-of-War Agency (IPWA). Its main task was to trace PoW and to re-establish communications with their respective families. Already at the end of the same year, it had a staff of some 1,200 volunteers who worked in the Musée Rath of Geneva. Many of them were girls, women, and students. Their mandate was based on resolution VI of the 9th conference of Washington in 1912 and hence limited to military personnel. However, the committee member and medical doctor founded a civilian section against the advice of other committee members.
International Committee of the Red Cross archives | World War I
The international community considers Israeli settlements to violate the Fourth Geneva Convention's prohibition on the transfer of an occupying power's civilian population into occupied territory. Israel disputes the applicability of the Fourth Geneva Convention and argues that the Palestinian territories were not legally held by a sovereign when Israel took control of them. This view has been rejected by the International Court of Justice and the International Committee of the Red Cross.
Psagot | Status under international law
In the early years, every Committee member was Genevan, Protestant, white, and male. The first woman, Renée-Marguerite Cramer, was co-opted in 1918. Since then, several women have attained the Vice Presidency, and the female proportion after the Cold War has been about 15%. The first non-Genevans were admitted in 1923, and one Jew has served in the Assembly. While the rest of the Red Cross Movement may be multi-national, the Committee believes that its mono-national nature is an asset because the nationality in question is Swiss. Thanks to permanent Swiss neutrality, conflicting parties can be sure that no one from "the enemy" will be setting policy in Geneva.
International Committee of the Red Cross | Assembly
Personnel of the Medical Service using the protective sign are prohibited under the laws of war from taking part in combat action, and facilities or vehicles identified in that way may not be used for military operations. Medical units and personnel also lose their protection under international humanitarian law if they commit acts harmful to the enemy "outside their humanitarian function", as set forth e.g. by the First Geneva Convention, Additional Protocols I and II, as well as by rule 25 of customary international humanitarian law. However, medical personnel may be armed, usually with service pistols, for the purpose of self defense or the defense of patients, and their facilities (such as hospitals) may be guarded for the same defensive purpose.
Army Medical Service (Germany) | Status under international humanitarian law
The international community considers all Israeli settlements in the West Bank to violate the Fourth Geneva Convention's prohibition on the transfer of an occupying power's civilian population into occupied territory. Israel disputes that the Fourth Geneva Convention applies to the Palestinian territories as they had not been legally held by a sovereign prior to Israel taking control of them. This view has been rejected by the International Court of Justice and the International Committee of the Red Cross.
Otniel | Status under international law
Nofei Prat is widely regarded by the international community as illegal under international law according to the Fourth Geneva Convention (article 49), which prohibits an occupying power transferring citizens from its own territory to occupied territory. Israel maintains that international conventions relating to occupied land do not apply to the West Bank because they were not under the legitimate sovereignty of any state in the first place. This view was rejected by the International Court of Justice and the International Committee of the Red Cross. According to the ARIJ, Nofei Prat is located on land confiscated from the Palestinian town of 'Anata.
Nofei Prat | Legal Status
Well-known examples of such rules include the prohibition on attacking doctors or ambulances displaying a red cross. It is also prohibited to fire at a person or vehicle bearing a white flag, since that, being considered the flag of truce, indicates an intent to surrender or a desire to communicate. In either case, the persons protected by the Red Cross or the white flag are expected to maintain neutrality, and may not engage in warlike acts themselves; engaging in war activities under a white flag or a red cross is itself a violation of the laws of war. These examples of the laws of war address: It is a violation of the laws of war to engage in combat without meeting certain requirements, among them the wearing of a distinctive uniform or other easily identifiable badge, and the carrying of weapons openly.
International humanitarian law | Examples
National societies will be given the lead especially when a conflict is happening within their own country.
International Committee of the Red Cross | Responsibilities within the movement
Modern laws of war, such as the 1949 Geneva Conventions, also include prohibitions on attacking doctors, ambulances or hospital ships displaying a Red Cross, a Red Crescent, Magen David Adom, The Red Crystal, or other emblem related to the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement. It is also prohibited to fire at a person or vehicle bearing a white flag, since that indicates an intent to surrender or a desire to communicate. In either case, people protected by the Red Cross/Crescent/Star or white flag are expected to maintain neutrality, and may not engage in warlike acts. In fact, engaging in war activities under a protected symbol is itself a violation of the laws of war known as perfidy.
Law of war | Red Cross, Red Crescent, Magen David Adom, and the white flag
The international community considers Israeli settlements to violate the Fourth Geneva Convention's prohibition on the transfer of an occupying power's civilian population into occupied territory and are as such illegal under customary international law. Israel disputes that the Fourth Geneva Convention applies to the Palestinian territories as they had not been legally held by a sovereign prior to Israel taking control of them. This view has been rejected by the International Court of Justice and the International Committee of the Red Cross. Modi'in Illit was granted city status in 2008, by Aluf Gadi Shamni. The Israeli NGO B'Tselem appealed the decision to the Ministry of Interior.
Modi'in Illit | Legal status of the settlement
Furthermore, due to the intervention of the Agency, about 200,000 prisoners were exchanged between the warring parties, released from captivity and returned to their home country. The organizational card index of the Agency accumulated about 7 million records from 1914 to 1923, each card representing an individual prisoner or missing person. The card index led to the identification of about 2 million POWs and the ability to contact their families, as part of the Restoring Family Links effort of the organization. The complete index is on loan today from the ICRC to the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Museum in Geneva.
International Committee of the Red Cross | World War I
The Military & Hospitaller Order of Saint Lazarus of Jerusalem has since its reunification striven to change its structure to suit the modern world organizing itself into a formal legal foundation to better function within the framework requirements demanded of associations and non-governmental organizations by the modern world. Since 2005, the Order has operated as a registered company in the United Kingdom defined as an unincorporated or voluntary association constituted under the constitution adopted in 2006. In 2014, steps were undertaken to set up a private foundation to serve as a non-profit organization regulated by Spanish legal provisions. The International Hospitaller Foundation of Saint Lazarus of Jerusalem serves to coordinate worldwide initiatives involving assistance, healthcare, attending the sick and needy, and promoting humanism and Christian values carried out by organizations of different nationalities under the banner of St Lazarus.
Order of Saint Lazarus (statuted 1910) | Present legal status
The Third Geneva Convention of 1949 uses "regular armed forces" as a critical distinction. The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) is a non-governmental organization primarily responsible for and most closely associated with the drafting and successful completion of the Third Geneva Convention Relative to the Treatment of Prisoners of War ("GPW"). The ICRC provided commentary saying that "regular armed forces" satisfy four Hague Conventions (1899 and 1907) (Hague IV) conditions. In other words, "regular forces" must satisfy the following criteria:
Irregular military | Regular vs. irregular
The Red Cross on white background was the original protection symbol declared at the 1864 Geneva Convention. The ideas to introduce a uniform and neutral protection symbol as well as its specific design originally came from Dr. Louis Appia, a Swiss surgeon, and Swiss General Henri Dufour, founding members of the International Committee. The red cross symbolizes as an identifier for medical personnel during wartime. The Red Cross is defined as a protection symbol in Article 7 of the 1864 Geneva Convention, Chapter VII ("The distinctive emblem") and Article 38 of the 1949 Geneva Convention ("For the Amelioration of the Condition of the Wounded and Sick in Armed Forces in the Field").
Emblems of the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement | Red Cross
They ruled that "Conventional international law does not become part of Israeli law through automatic incorporation, but only if it is adopted or combined with Israeli law by enactment of primary or subsidiary legislation from which it derives its force". However, in the same decision the Court ruled that the Fourth Hague Convention rules governing belligerent occupation did apply, since those were recognized as customary international law. The Israeli High Court of Justice determined in the 1979 Elon Moreh case that the area in question was under occupation and that accordingly only the military commander of the area may requisition land according to Article 52 of the Regulations annexed to the Hague IV Convention.
Status of territories occupied by Israel in 1967 | Israeli judicial decisions
The International Committee of the Red Cross has a mandate of ensuring the application of International Humanitarian Law as it affects civilians in the midst of armed conflict. They have traditionally not distinguished between civilians who are internally displaced and those who remain in their homes. In a 2006 policy statement, the ICRC stated: The ICRC's overall objective is to alleviate the suffering of people who are caught up in armed conflict and other situations of violence. To that end, the organization strives to provide effective and efficient assistance and protection for such persons, be they displaced or not, while taking into consideration the action of other humanitarian organizations.
Internally displaced person | ICRC
Presently, the Italian Red Cross has the status of a sovranational charitable organization, under the high patronage of the President of the Italian Republic. The Italian Red Cross is currently a member of the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies. Doctor Massimo Barra was elected President of the Italian Red Cross on December 11, 2005 and served until October 30, 2008, when the Italian Government appointed Extraordinary Commissioner Francesco Rocca. On January 27, 2013 Francesco Rocca was elected President of the IRC during the National Assembly of the organisation. Italian Red Cross vehicles bear special license plates.
Italian Red Cross | Current Operations
If there is a question of whether a person is a lawful combatant, he (or she) must be treated as a POW "until their status has been determined by a competent tribunal" (GCIII Article 5). If the tribunal decides that he is an unlawful combatant, he is not considered a protected person under GCIII. However, if he is a protected person under GCIV he still has some protection under GCIV and must be "treated with humanity and, in case of trial, shall not be deprived of the rights of fair and regular trial prescribed by the present Convention" (GCIV Article 5).
Torture | Geneva Convention IV exemptions
ARC International Services educates the American public about the guiding principles of international humanitarian law (IHL) for conduct in warfare as set forth by the Geneva Conventions of 1949. In doing so, ARC International Services provides support to ARC chapters in their IHL dissemination efforts, offering courses and providing instructor training.
American Red Cross | International humanitarian law
The international community considers Israeli settlements in the Israeli-occupied West Bank to be illegal under international law, violating the Fourth Geneva Convention's prohibition on the transfer of civilians into or out of occupied territory. Israel however disputes that the Fourth Geneva Convention applies to the West Bank and disputes their illegality.
Halamish | Legal status
Reacting to the experience of World War II, the Fourth Geneva Convention, a new Convention "relative to the Protection of Civilian Persons in Time of War," was established. Also, the additional protocols of 8 June 1977 were intended to make the conventions apply to internal conflicts such as civil wars. Today, the four conventions and their added protocols contain more than 600 articles, a remarkable expansion when compared to the mere 10 articles in the first 1864 convention. In celebration of its centennial in 1963, the ICRC, together with the League of Red Cross Societies, received its third Nobel Peace Prize.
International Committee of the Red Cross | After World War II
In certain sectors, the SRC has founded organizations that operate under private law (foundation or joint stock company) or civil law (association). The government resolution passed in June 1951, which states that the provision of the ‘blood transfusion service for civil and military purposes’ is one of the most important missions of the SRC, provides the legal basis for the activities of the Blood Transfusion Service. The Lindenhof hospital is a private charitable hospital and is recognized as an official service provider by the Canton of Bern. It offers its services in accordance with the legal provisions and its facilities for every section of the community and for all insurance categories.
Swiss Red Cross | Institutions
UNRWA's services are available to all those living in its area of operations who meet this definition, who are registered with the Agency and who need assistance. UNRWA's definition of a refugee also covers the descendants of persons who became refugees in 1948." Since the definition used by UNRWA was originally made on an operational basis rather than dictated by specific international law, obligations and rights related to Palestinian refugees under international law are a matter of some debate. The debate centers on questions such as: whether the status of refugees can properly be passed through inheritance to individuals who have never lived in the vacated areas, and whether individuals who have repatriated in other countries can legally claim refugee status.
International law and the Arab–Israeli conflict | Legal definition of refugee
Like all Israeli settlements in the Israeli-occupied territories, Efrat is considered illegal under international law, though Israel disputes this. Most of the international community considers Israeli settlements to violate the Fourth Geneva Convention's prohibition on the transfer of an occupying power's civilian population into occupied territory. Israel disputes that the Fourth Geneva Convention applies to the Palestinian territories as they had not been legally held by a sovereign prior to Israel taking control of them. This view has been rejected by the International Court of Justice and the International Committee of the Red Cross.
Efrat | Status under international law
Like all Israeli settlements in the Israeli-occupied territories, Ofra is considered illegal under international law. The international community considers Israeli settlements to violate the Fourth Geneva Convention's prohibition on the transfer of an occupying power's civilian population into occupied territory. The position of successive Israeli governments is that all authorized settlements are entirely legal and consistent with international law. The Israeli government disputes this on the basis of their position that the Palestinian territories are not occupied territory and as such does not accept that the Fourth Geneva Convention applies "de jure", but has stated that on humanitarian issues it will govern itself "de facto" by its provisions, without specifying which these are.
Ofra | Status under international law
The Hague Convention of 1907 distinguished between militia, volunteer corps and members of the regular armed forces. According to the then ruling legal principle, volunteers did not have to be brought before a court. They could be sentenced by a court martial and executed. A historic example is the execution of the officers of the "Freischar" of Ferdinand von Schill in 1809. This legal situation changed with the signing of the Geneva Convention. "Freischärler" were given combatant status if they had an organisational structure, a fixed distinctive emblem recognizable at a distance, carried arms openly and conducted their operations in accordance with the laws and customs of war.
Freischar | Legal status
A notable exception to this is the United States where, although the United States first ratified the Geneva Conventions in 1882, for 18 years no legislation was passed to enact treaty obligations regarding the protection of the Red Cross symbol. On 6 June 1900, the bill to charter the American National Red Cross (ARC) was signed into law. Section 4, which ultimately was codified as 18 U.S.C. §706, protected the Greek red cross symbol by making it a misdemeanor for any person or association to use the Red Cross name or emblem without the organization's permission. Penalties included imprisonment not to exceed one year and a fine between $1 and $500, payable to the ARC.
Emblems of the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement | Use of the emblems in the United States
are considered as 'taking no active part in the hostilities' only once they have disengaged from their fighting function ('have laid down their arms') or are placed hors de combat; mere suspension of combat is insufficient." International Committee of the Red Cross, Interpretive Guidance on the Notion of Direct Participation in Hostilities Under International Humanitarian Law 28 (2009). An operation against a senior operational leader of al-Qa'ida or its associated forces who poses an imminent threat of violent attack against the United States would target a person who is taking "an active part in hostilities" and therefore would not constitute a "grave breach" of Common Article 3
020413 DOJ White Paper | IV
The Irish branch of the St. John Ambulance Association continued to operate after independence and T. F. O'Higgins suggested in the Dáil debate on the 1938 act that, already recognised under the Geneva Conventions, it might be recognised as the Irish affiliate of the ICRC. The Spanish Civil War (Non-Intervention) Act 1937, which prohibited Irish involvement in the Spanish Civil War, made an exception for units certified by the government as "Red Cross units" where "such unit is organised by or is working under the auspices of a society or organisation (whether established in Saorstát Eireann or in another country) having as its object or one of its objects the furnishing of volunteer aid to the sick and wounded of armies in time of war".
Irish Red Cross | Precursors
The society meets most of the conditions laid out in Article 4 of the Statutes of the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement of 1995, except that Taiwan is not a signatory to the Geneva Conventions. Its mission may be made more difficult because of a lack of clarity surrounding the society's independence from the Red Cross Society of China.
Red Cross Society of the Republic of China | International recognition
United Kingdom (UK) citizen Moazzam Begg had requested two witnesses who he felt would substantiate that an employee of the International Committee of the Red Cross had issued him a Geneva Convention Prisoner of War (POW) card. Begg had requested the testimony of the ICRC employees, and of an American officer, who had knowledge of his POW status. His Tribunal's President had initially ruled that Begg's witnesses were relevant. However the assistant legal advisor convinced her that these witnesses were not relevant, because Combatant Status Review Tribunals weren't authorized to determine whether captives were entitled to the protections of Prisoner of War status.
Legal Advisor (Office for the Administrative Review of the Detention of Enemy Combatants) | Moazzam Begg's tribunal
The most reliable primary source on the role of the Red Cross during World War II are the three volumes of the "Report of the International Committee of the Red Cross on its activities during the second world war (September 1, 1939 – June 30, 1947)" written by the International Committee of the Red Cross itself. The report can be read online. The legal basis of the work of the ICRC during World War II was the Geneva Conventions in their 1929 revision. The activities of the committee were similar to those during World War I: visiting and monitoring POW camps, organizing relief assistance for civilian populations, and administering the exchange of messages regarding prisoners and missing persons.
International Committee of the Red Cross | World War II
They are humanity, impartiality, neutrality, independence, volunteerism, unity, and universality.
International Committee of the Red Cross | Mission
Military medical personnel engage in humanitarian work and are "protected persons" under international humanitarian law in accordance with the First and Second Geneva Conventions and their Additional Protocols, which established legally binding rules guaranteeing neutrality and protection for wounded soldiers, field or ship's medical personnel, and specific humanitarian institutions in an armed conflict. International humanitarian law makes no distinction between medical personnel who are members of the armed forces (and who hold military ranks) and those who are civilian volunteers. All medical personnel are considered non-combatants under international humanitarian law because of their humanitarian duties, and they may not be attacked and not be taken as prisoners of war; hospitals and other medical facilities and transports identified as such, whether they are military or civilian, may not be attacked either.
Military medicine | Legal status
A similar law was considered in Estonia, but eventually failed in a parliamentary committee due to its conflict with freedoms guaranteed by the constitution of Estonia. The European Court of Human Rights has ruled, in a similar manner, against the laws that ban political symbols, which were deemed to be in clear opposition with basic human rights, such as freedom of speech, confirmed again in 2011 in case "Fratanolo v. Hungary". The decision has been compared to the legislation concerning the symbols of Nazism, which continue to be banned in several European Union member states, including Germany and France. There have been calls for an EU-wide ban on both Soviet and Nazi symbols, notably by politicians from Lithuania, Estonia, the Czech Republic, Hungary and Slovakia.
Red star | Legal status
This position is rejected by human rights organisations such as Amnesty International, which notes that "it is a basic principle of human rights law that international human rights treaties are applicable in all areas in which states parties exercise effective control, regardless of whether or not they exercise sovereignty in that area."
Israeli demolition of Palestinian property | Legal status
Upon return to Geneva, Dunant published his account "Un Souvenir de Solferino". He urged the calling together of an international conference and soon co-founded the International Committee of the Red Cross in 1863. The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), while recognising that it is "primarily the duty and responsibility of a nation to safeguard the health and physical well-being of its own people", knew there would always, especially in times of war, be a "need for voluntary agencies to supplement…the official agencies charged with these responsibilities in every country." To ensure that its mission was widely accepted, it required a body of rules to govern its own activities and those of the involved belligerent parties.
First Geneva Convention | History
The lobby in Berlin was a success and already in October of that year the first International Conference of the Red Cross took place in Geneva. On 22 August 1864 this led to the Geneva Convention, ratified by 16 countries. This laid the foundation for International Humanitarian Law . The committee in Geneva, then consisting of five Swiss including Dunant and later called the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), became the custodian of International Humanitarian Law.
Johan Hendrik Christiaan Basting | Establishment of the Red Cross Movement
The official mission of the ICRC as an impartial, neutral, and independent organization is to stand for the protection of the life and dignity of victims of international and internal armed conflicts. According to the 1997 Seville Agreement, it is the "Lead Agency" of the Movement in conflicts. The core tasks of the committee, which are derived from the Geneva Conventions and its own statutes, are the following:
International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement | Mission of the ICRC and its responsibilities within the Movement
Prisoners of war are covered by the Third Geneva Convention (GCIII) until and unless ""their status has been determined by a competent tribunal" (GCIII Art 5) to be that of civilians not affiliated with the armed forces or unlawful combatants, in which case they are covered by Fourth Geneva Convention (GCIV) unless they are ""[n]ationals of a State which is not bound by the Convention [and therefore] not protected by it. Nationals of a neutral State who find themselves in the territory of a belligerent State, and nationals of a co-belligerent State, shall not be regarded as protected persons while the State of which they are nationals has normal diplomatic representation in the State in whose hands they are.""(GCIV Art 4.
Stress and duress | Status of prisoners under the Geneva Conventions
The International Review of the Red Cross is a quarterly peer-reviewed international humanitarian law journal published by Cambridge University Press on behalf of the International Committee of the Red Cross. The journal provides a "forum for debate, reflection and critical analysis on international humanitarian law, humanitarian action and policy in times of armed conflict and other situations of violence". It was established in 1869 and has been published by Cambridge University Press since 2006. It was first published as "Bulletin international des Sociétés de secours aux militaires blessés" and later as "Bulletin international des Sociétés de la Croix-Rouge." The English language supplement began in 1948, the English edition in April 1961.
International Review of the Red Cross | Introduction
UN Security Council Resolution 446 refers to the Fourth Geneva Convention as the applicable international legal instrument, and calls upon Israel to desist from transferring its own population into the territories or changing their demographic makeup. The reconvened Conference of the High Contracting Parties to the Geneva Conventions has declared the settlements illegal as has the primary judicial organ of the UN, the International Court of Justice. The position of successive Israeli governments is that all authorized settlements are entirely legal and consistent with international law. In practice, Israel does not accept that the Fourth Geneva Convention applies "de jure", but has stated that on humanitarian issues it will govern itself "de facto" by its provisions, without specifying which these are.
Israeli settlement | Legal status
upon its ratification of the 1949 Geneva Conventions includes a reservation that pre-1905 U.S. domestic uses of the Red Cross, such as Johnson & Johnson's, would remain lawful as long as the cross is not used on "aircraft, vessels, vehicles, buildings or other structures, or upon the ground," i.e., uses which could be confused with its military uses. This means that the U.S. did not agree to any interpretation of the 1949 Geneva Conventions that would overrule Johnson & Johnson's trademark. The American Red Cross continues to recognize the validity of Johnson & Johnson's trademark. In August 2007, Johnson & Johnson filed a lawsuit against the American Red Cross (ARC), demanding that the charity halt the use of the red cross symbol on products it sells to the public, though the company takes no issue with the charity's use of the mark for non-profit purposes.
Johnson &amp; Johnson | Use of the Red Cross symbol