Georgia: Our work in 2018 at a glance
According to official figures, over 2,300 persons are still unaccounted for as a consequence of armed conflicts of the 1990's and August 2008. In search for the missing people, 60 sites were …
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Iraq: Not your average school
In a remote camp in Iraq's Diyala governorate, around 150 families live together. You might not have heard about them in the news, but just like any other camp, people here are struggling to survive. …
Missing in connection with 1990s, 2008 conflicts remains of 23 more people identified
Geneva (ICRC) – The family members of 23 people, who were unaccounted for in connection with the armed conflicts of 1990s and August 2008, were informed that their loved ones were positively …
Nigeria camps struggling to cope after latest hostilities
A spike in violence has seen tens of thousands of people uprooted from their communities in north-eastern Nigeria. The influx of people to urban centres has placed additional strain on limited …
Status update: The ICRC’s legal standing explained
Due to its unique mandate, the ICRC enjoys specific privileges and immunities under international and domestic law. But why exactly does the ICRC need them? Knut Dörmann, the ICRC's chief legal …
Changing world, unchanged protection? 70 years of the Geneva Conventions
President's address at the Graduate Institute, Geneva Destroyed buildings in Mosul, Iraq. CC BY-NC-ND/ ICRC/ Clare Cameron It's always a pleasure to speak at the Graduate Institute and with an …
Changing World, Unchanged Protection? 70 Years of the Geneva Conventions
Seventy years on, the Geneva Conventions are much more than a legacy, or simply something to be proud of and commemorate. A lot has been achieved since 1949...But much more needs to be done... Read …
Detained in Myanmar: Son’s Red Cross message ends woman’s 7 month long anxious wait
That day nine words changed her life. “Dear Mother. How are you? We are in Bangladesh.” Some months ago, Adere Begum* would not have known that one day just nine words would change her life. But …
Dignified management of the dead: Aid workers draw lessons from Indonesia quake
It has been five months since an earthquake and ensuing tsunami and soil liquefactions caused havoc in several parts of Indonesia’s Central Sulawesi. But the gruesome scenes of death and destruction …
China: Hong Kong moot brings Asian perspective into International Humanitarian Law
The 17th Red Cross International Humanitarian Law (IHL) Moot for Asia Pacific region, co-organized by the international Committee of the Red Cross and the Hong Kong Red Cross, concluded in Hong Kong. …
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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.