Relentless violence, tensions and uncertainty
in Iraq have made the humanitarian mission ever more difficult to carry
out. But despite the challenges, the ICRC and its partners are still doing
a lot.
The prevailing insecurity in Iraq has
obliged humanitarian organisations, including the ICRC, to adapt their
way of helping the population. The ICRC currently focuses on activities
for which it has a specific mandate under international humanitarian law
- such as visits to persons deprived of their freedom - and on emergency support for the water and sanitation and medical sectors.
The organisation also continues to cooperate with its local partner, the Iraqi Red Crescent Society (IRCS), and seeks to strengthen the society by providing finance and training.
Even though some staff have had to be withdrawn because of the security situation, the ICRC continues to operate in Iraq with a core team of expatriates and Iraqi staff based in offices across the country.
Reacting to emergencies
"We have had to adjust our way of working to take account of the risks", says Georges Comninos, who oversees the ICRC's Iraq operation at headquarters in Geneva. "However, we are still doing a lot. We also try to closely monitor the humanitarian situation so that we can react quickly to any major emergencies such as the devastating bomb attack on a mosque in Najaf in late August."
The ICRC carries out regular visits to places of detention in Iraq including different facilities under the control of the Occupying Powers. All the people detained at these facilities - whether they are prisoners of war, civilian internees, security internees or suspected of common law offences - are protected by the Third or Fourth Geneva Conventions that include the right to ICRC visits.
The ICRC's main objective is to monitor the conditions of detention - factors such as accommodation, medical care, food, water and sanitation - and the treatment of detainees by the authorities in charge. The ICRC has registered thousands of detainees to be able to monitor their condition.
Anxious families
Many families of detainees in Iraq face the anguish of not knowing what happened to their relatives. Through the work of the ICRC families are informed of their detained relatives' whereabouts and given the possibility to restore contacts by sending a Red Cross Message.
"This is extremely important for the families", says Georges Comninos. "Often they don't even know that their relative was detained. This causes a lot of anxiety for the families who desperately try to find out what happened to their loved ones".
Since March 2003, more than 10,000 such messages have been exchanged between detainees and their families. During two visits to detention places in late September alone nearly 1,300 Red Cross Messages were collected from detainees and several hundred distributed to them.
In total, Iraqis have sent and received more than 21,000 Red Cross Messages since March 2003. These messages are distributed and collected with the help of the Iraqi Red Crescent Society.