Geneva (ICRC) – Some 30 persons, most of them Iraqi Red Crescent workers, were kidnapped by unidentified armed men in the morning of 17 December from their duty station in the Iraqi capital.

Shortly thereafter, ICRC Director of Operations Pierre Krähenbühl appealed for the unconditional and immediate release of the Iraqi Red Crescent personnel and of all others abducted with them. “I call upon those who carried out the kidnapping at the Iraqi Red Crescent office to immediately release all the abducted persons unharmed,” he said. “Iraqi Red Crescent workers provide vital help for all Iraqis in need. They do so with devotion and with humanity. They must be respected and supported, not harmed.”

The Iraqi Red Crescent offices are clearly identified by the red crescent emblem. The staff working for this humanitarian organization are entitled to full protection under international humanitarian law.