International humanitarian law is under strain, disregarded, undermined to justify violence: ICRC President

GENEVA (WAM)

President of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), Mirjana Spoljaric Egger, affirmed the need to recommit to the robust, protective framework for armed conflict.

She noted that it should follow the premise of protecting life instead of justifying death.

In a speech marking the 75th anniversary of the Geneva Conventions, the ICRC President said, “The Geneva Conventions are the foundational treaties of international humanitarian law (IHL) and a remarkable success in many ways.”

Criticising the status quo, she proposed “International humanitarian law is under strain. Disregarded. Undermined to justify violence” as a headline for this year's anniversary.

Egger said that the Geneva Conventions are not only unique and universal, but they have also shown impressive durability, especially as they prohibit torture and sexual violence, require humane treatment of detainees, and fundamentally, reflect a global consensus that every war has limits.

She announced "making adherence to the Geneva Conventions a political priority" as her first call.

“25 years ago, former ICRC President Cornelio Sommaruga spoke of 20 active conflicts. Today, there are more than 120 conflicts recorded by my organisation.”

"Around the world’s war zones, the sanctity of hospitals is disregarded. Ambulances are attacked. Schools are stripped of their civilian character for allegedly benefiting adversaries. Delivery of humanitarian assistance is impeded due to concerns about misuse of relief items. Humanitarian workers are killed in horrifying numbers – including my ICRC and Red Cross Red Crescent Movement colleagues."

The ICRC President proposed a four-point pathway to reduce suffering.

“First, parties to armed conflict must make a renewed commitment to the Geneva Conventions, adhering to the letter and the spirit of the law,” she explained.

“Next, I call on states to ratify and uphold IHL treaties, including the additional protocols to the Geneva Conventions. Third, we must see tangible humanitarian improvements in places affected by armed conflict. And fourth, states must affirm that the use of new technologies of warfare – AI, cyber operations, information operations – strictly adheres to IHL. More specifically, it is urgent that states develop a normative framework that imposes certain limits on autonomous weapon systems.”