Three staff members of the International Committee of the Red Cross, ICRC, tragically lost their lives on Thursday after shelling struck a planned frontline aid distribution site in the Donetsk region of Ukraine.
Two additional ICRC workers sustained injuries in the attack. The humanitarian assistance had yet to be distributed, and no civilians were harmed, according to an official ICRC statement.
The team had been preparing to deliver wood and coal briquettes to vulnerable households in the village of Viroliubivka, north of Donetsk city, when the vehicles they were using were hit.
ICRC President Mirjana Spoljaric condemned the attack, stating, “it’s unconscionable that shelling would target an aid distribution site. Our hearts are broken as we mourn our colleagues and care for the wounded. This tragedy reminds us of the devastating grief endured by those affected by armed conflict.”
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The ICRC underscored that its vehicles were clearly marked with the Red Cross emblem and that the organization operates as a neutral, impartial, and independent entity under the Geneva Conventions of 1949. This attack highlights a growing global danger for humanitarian workers, with a sharp rise in casualties over the past two years.
The ICRC urgently called for strict adherence to international humanitarian law to ensure that those engaged in humanitarian activities are not targeted or drawn into hostilities. The organization continues its mission to protect lives and alleviate suffering in conflict zones worldwide.
The ICRC is a neutral, impartial and independent organization with an exclusively humanitarian mandate that stems from the Geneva Conventions of 1949. It helps people around the world affected by armed conflict and other violence, doing everything it can to protect their lives and dignity and to relieve their suffering, often alongside its Red Cross and Red Crescent partners.
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