Philippines: Marawi Operations Update No. 5
The fighting between government forces and the Maute group in Marawi City, Lanao del Sur, has continued for more than a month now. Residential and commercial areas east of the Agus River have been …
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Australia: Launch of updated commentary to the Second Geneva Convention
The Geneva Conventions of 1949 marked one of the greatest humanitarian legal achievements of the 20th century, with the Second Geneva Convention regulating for the first time the protection of …
Humanizing the laws of war – the Red Cross and the development of International Humanitarian Law
As part of its conference cycle on Generating respect for the law , the ICRC and the German Permanent Mission to the United Nations will convene a panel discussion on 29 June at the Humanitarium to …
Events
We will be presenting the handbook at the following events: 04 September, Gammarth, Tunisia: 10ème Conférence Francophone, Association Francophone des Autorités de Protection des Données …
War in Syria: Latest from the front line
The Syrian war has entered its seventh year. It remains the largest and most complex humanitarian crisis in the world. People's needs on the ground are rising sharply throughout the country. …
The Additional Protocols at 40: upholding humanity in today's conflicts
To mark the 40th anniversary of Protocols I and II additional to the Geneva Conventions of 1949 (the Additional Protocols) on 8 June 2017, the ICRC convened a conference at the Humanitarium , where …
More needs to be done to clarify the fate of over 1,600 people missing in relation to conflict in Kosovo
Belgrade/Pristina/Geneva (ICRC) – 1,658 people who went missing in connection with the 1998–1999 armed conflict in Kosovo are still being sought by their families. In recent years, very little …
ICRC to participate in Urban Humanitarian Response Symposium
Last year alone, more than 65.3 million people were forcibly displaced by conflict, while each year on average 26.4 million people are displaced by natural hazards. Globally, more than half of all …
Where it matters
On 19 June, as part of the ICRC conference cycle on War in cities , the ICRC, the Norwegian Refugee Council (NRC) and HERE-Geneva convened a panel of experts at the Humanitarium to look at the ways …
About the handbook
Protecting individuals' personal data is an integral part of protecting their life and dignity. This is why personal data protection is of fundamental importance for humanitarian organizations. …
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Created in 1863, the ICRC library, alongside the ICRC archives, provides an indispensable documentary reference on the organization itself and international humanitarian law.
IHL treaties
International humanitarian law is based on a number of treaties, in particular the Geneva Conventions of 1949 and their Additional Protocols, and a series of other instruments.
Customary IHL
Customary international humanitarian law consists of rules that come from "a general practice accepted as law" and that exist independent of treaty law.