Gaza Herald- The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) issued a statement from its New York office on Friday, condemning the dire humanitarian situation in Gaza and urging all states to fulfill their responsibilities under international law.
While avoiding direct accusations, the statement referenced Israel only once, in a call to resume Red Cross access to Palestinian detainees in Israeli custody.
“There is absolutely no justification for the devastation unfolding in Gaza,” the ICRC declared. “The immense human suffering and the erosion of human dignity have surpassed all legal and moral limits.”
The organization demanded swift and decisive action, warning that any political inaction or attempts to excuse the atrocities taking place would go down in history as a collective failure to uphold the basic principles of humanity during wartime.
The ICRC also reminded states of their legal obligations under the Geneva Conventions, including the need to ensure that any weapons transfers do not lead to violations of international humanitarian law.
The statement further called for immediate, unrestricted, and impartial humanitarian aid to be delivered throughout Gaza. It also pressed for the unconditional release of all remaining hostages and for the ICRC to be allowed to resume its visits to Palestinian prisoners held by Israel.
Red Cross in Gaza: Neutral Mediator or Israeli Ally?
Since the beginning of Israel’s assault on Gaza in October 2023, the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) has found itself at the center of controversy. The organization has been accused of double standards and suspicious behavior. Many have interpreted these actions as clear bias in favor of Tel Aviv.
These criticisms intensified during prisoner and body exchange operations under the ceasefire agreement, as Palestinians observed a stark contrast in the Red Cross’s treatment of victims and aggressors. This fueled deeper doubts about the organization’s credibility and its humanitarian role.
The ICRC describes itself as a “neutral and independent organization that ensures protection and assistance in the humanitarian field for those affected by armed conflicts and other violence.” However, the recent war on Gaza has exposed the falsity of this claim, revealing a glaring disparity in how it deals with different affected parties.
The Red Cross is funded by state parties to the Geneva Conventions (governments), national Red Cross and Red Crescent societies, supranational organizations such as the European Commission, and both public and private sources.
As accusations of bias grow, serious questions are being raised about whether the international organization can perform its humanitarian duties with integrity, free from political pressure and imposed power dynamics on the ground.
Receiving the Bodies
Debate over the Red Cross’s role reignited when it received the first batch of Israeli captive bodies from Gaza on February 20, 2025, as part of the first phase of a three-stage ceasefire agreement.
The Palestinian resistance placed each Israeli body in a black coffin, marked with the captive’s photo, name, date of capture, and date of death, before handing them to the Red Cross.
What drew attention was the Red Cross covering each black coffin with a clean white cloth and assigning a dedicated SUV to transport each one to Israel.
The organization also made efforts to ensure that the Palestinian public could not view the coffins, shielding them with white plastic dividers during the covering process and banning photography, citing respect for the dead.
This image of respectful handling stood in harsh contrast to how the Red Cross typically treats Palestinian martyrs, who are wrapped in blue bags, stacked in large freight trucks, and left in hospital courtyards or near mass graves, often with no effort to identify them.
Gaza’s Government Media Office director, Ismail Al-Thawabta, commented:
“While the Red Cross holds solemn official ceremonies when receiving Israeli bodies, it delivers Palestinian martyrs in blue bags dumped into trucks with zero regard for human dignity.”
He added on X: “This blatant discrimination reflects double standards and exposes the international failure to ensure justice and fairness.”
Palestinian journalist Basel Al-Nairab stated: “The International Red Cross participates in the racism of death. They handed over the bodies of our Palestinian martyrs in blue bags without any regard for human emotions, while the Zionists’ coffins were received wrapped and veiled, hidden from public view.”
Gaza-based journalist Diaa Al-Kahlout added:
“Israel dumped the bodies of dozens of Palestinians, stolen from Gaza cemeteries, at the Kerem Shalom crossing gates in blue plastic bags without names or identified burial locations. The Red Cross played no role in the matter.”
He continued: “Today, the Red Cross does everything, and more, on behalf of four Israelis killed by their own army. They even issued statements asking for respect for the dead. This is not surprising. Just another double standard in a world addicted to hypocrisy.”
The Prisoners File
In addition to the issue of bodies, the Red Cross’s handling of Palestinian prisoners and detainees in Israeli jails has long drawn scrutiny, especially when compared to its treatment of Israelis held in Gaza.
During the brief truce in November 2023, when a limited prisoner exchange took place, another double standard became visible.
Red Cross teams welcomed released Israeli captives with hugs and smiles, showering them with attention — something that never happens with released Palestinian prisoners.
Palestinian journalist Moath Hamed posted on X a video showing Red Cross staff hugging released Israeli women. He commented:
“I was arrested by Israel six times as a child. The Red Cross always visited me alone. Not once in my life did they hug me.”
He continued: “Their greetings never went beyond a handshake. But here we see group hugs for released Israelis.”
Moreover, since October 7, the Red Cross has not visited any Palestinian prisoners, despite reports of intensified abuse and torture following the launch of Operation Al-Aqsa Flood.
According to local sources, the organization has not facilitated any family visits to prisoners nor explained the reasons for its silence since October 7.
This is despite the ICRC stating that one of its core activities is “visiting detainees in Israeli and Palestinian detention facilities” and maintaining family links through its “family visit program.”
In previous years, especially in 2012, the Red Cross was also accused of ignoring the plight of Palestinian prisoners on hunger strikes.
In 2016, a crisis erupted between the Red Cross and families of Jerusalemite prisoners after the organization reduced services to families during prison visits from twice a month to once.
Families were eventually forced to rent buses at their own expense, as the Red Cross ignored their complaints.
More recently, released prisoner Yousef Al-Mabhouh, freed on February 8, 2025, said:
“We were beaten by Israeli forces while the Red Cross was present, right before my release. You claim neutrality. What exactly is your role?”
Ignoring the Besieged
The controversy over bodies and prisoners is not the first to raise suspicion about the Red Cross’s conduct. For over 15 months of genocidal warfare in Gaza, the organization’s teams were virtually absent.
Palestinians recount dozens of incidents where they contacted the Red Cross while being trapped by Israeli military forces, pleading for rescue, but received no response.
One particularly haunting case was the storming of Al-Nasr Children’s Hospital in Gaza City on November 10, 2023, when Israeli forces expelled medical teams at gunpoint.
Israel refused to allow the evacuation of premature infants from the hospital, resulting in the deaths of five of them, according to the Ministry of Health.
After the army withdrew from the Al-Nasr neighborhood, the decomposed bodies of the five infants were found in their incubators and on hospital beds. They had been denied the medical care needed to survive.
At the time, the Euro-Med Human Rights Monitor called for holding the Red Cross accountable for failing to respond to urgent appeals to save the children.
Although the Red Cross initially pledged to rescue the infants, it later issued a statement justifying its inaction by citing “security conditions in northern Gaza.”
Gaza-based activist Tamer Qadeeh commented on the incident:
“Countless times, besieged families have called the Red Cross for rescue, only to be abandoned to death.”
He added on X: “These so-called humanitarian organizations measure their humanity based on religion, race, and nationality. They are racist organizations.”
Abdel Majid Ben Rachid also wrote:
“Do you remember when the Red Cross betrayed Gaza’s infants? The army forced doctors and families to flee the hospital at gunpoint. They promised to save the babies — then betrayed humanity.”
He continued: “They left them to die slowly in their tiny beds, decomposing in hunger and fear. Their blood is on the hands of every coward who remained silent.”
Even during the 2014 war on Gaza, the Red Cross faced accusations of ignoring the cries for help from residents of the devastated Shuja’iyya neighborhood.
