🤝 Getting aid to people in war zones isn’t just about logistics - it’s about trust.
ICRC President Mirjana Spoljaric on the enduring power of the Fundamental Principles of the Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement.
A valuable discussion on the #GlobalIHLInitiative with MPs Sarah Champion and Monica Harding of the International Development Committee, Fabian Hamilton MP of The British Group of the Inter-Parliamentary Union, and Freddie Carver of the @hpg-odiglobal.bsky.social of @odi.global.
⚖️ Yesterday at Westminster, ICRC President Mirjana Spoljaric addressed MPs, peers, and government officials on the urgent need to uphold the rules of war.
In an increasingly volatile world, strengthening respect for international humanitarian law cannot wait.
Thanks for following my updates.
I’ve tried to show humane treatment is a legal imperative as much as a moral one, rooted in international law.
When we restore or protect the dignity of detainees, we preserve what binds us together; our humanity.
– Terry
Respect for law and dignity: humane treatment and conditions for detainees and allowing contact with families helps keep a level of trust between parties in conflict and can reduce harm that fuels revenge.
Humane detention can build pathways to peace.
blogs.icrc.org/law-and-poli...
Torture and other forms of cruel, degrading or humiliating treatment are illegal and can never be justified.
We try to prevent these practices and put an end to them where they do occur. But, ultimately, treating detainees humanly is the responsibility of those who detain them.
Imagine being reduced to an animal, number, or object. This language strips people of dignity and is part of attempts to make cruelty – or even torture - easier to justify.
👇 My blog post on dehumanisation:
blogs.icrc.org/law-and-poli...
Terry here – back again for my final day of updates.
Today, I want to talk about the proliferation of dehumanising narratives in contexts of detention.
Let’s unpack why that matters.
I hope these updates are helping you see the human side of our work. Every detainee is a person - with a name, a family, and dignity that must be protected.
Tomorrow, I’ll talk about the issue of dehumanising narratives in detention, and what this means for detainees.
– Terry
But few moments are as powerful as seeing people who had been deprived of liberty being reunited with their families.
It’s a key role of the ICRC, and our teams around the world do remarkable work supporting it.
📸 Detainees being released in Yemen.
We also help detainees learn new skills.
In this prison in Chad, we run a programme that teaches detainees how to make soap: a small skill with a big impact.
It’s not just about hygiene. It’s about purpose and dignity.
www.icrc.org/en/article/c...
Our support for detainees takes many forms, including protecting their health.
In Kabul last year, we helped prison authorities fight a scabies outbreak - because everyone should have dignity and healthcare, even those in detention.
Hi again, Terry here.
Yesterday, we spoke about the roots of our detention work. Today, we’ll explore what this means for detainees and their families in specific contexts: Afghanistan, Chad, and Yemen.
Let’s get into it.
📸 Visiting places of detention in Afghanistan, 2024.
I’m signing off for today, but I’ll be back online tomorrow.
I’ll share what this work looks like in real-life situations, with stories from Yemen, Chad, and Afghanistan.
- Terry
During these visits, we should be able to:
1️⃣ Meet with authorities
2️⃣ Go to all areas of the place of detention to look at food, heating, hygiene
3️⃣ Interview detainees privately
4️⃣ Raise concerns with authorities
5️⃣ Return to visit again
📸 On a visit in The Philippines, 2020
In 2024, our teams conducted 1,804 visits to 661 places of detention.
We check detainees’ living conditions, speak with them in private, and help them stay in touch with family. Because being detained shouldn't mean being forgotten.
🎥 My colleague, Ross, explains.
We also work with detainees in non-international armed conflicts and other situations of violence, who are often labelled ‘political’ or ‘security’ detainees.
No matter why they are detained, they have a right to humane treatment.
📸 A delegate and detainee in Liberia, 2012.
This work is part of our DNA, dating back to our first detention visit to POW camps during WWI.
Under the Geneva Conventions, we must be given access to people who are detained in relation to international armed conflicts.
📸 German POWs pictured during an ICRC visit, 1915.
Let’s start with the basics: who is a detainee?
It’s anyone who is deprived of liberty, such as civilians or prisoners of war. But no matter the context, they must all be treated humanely
📸 An ICRC delegate speaking to a detainee in the Central African Republic, 2012.
Hi, I’m Terry Hackett. I lead the ICRC’s work with people deprived of their liberty.
Over the next 3 days, I’ll be sharing what our detention work looks like on the ground - how our teams support detainees, what we do, and why it matters.
📸 Me on the far left, in Venezuela.
📢#ICRCvoices | “Seeing human remains as people – not just bodies – is at the heart of forensics. It’s about protecting someone’s dignity in death.”
Irish forensic specialist Niamh Smith speaks about her work in Ukraine in our new ICRC Voices article.
www.icrc.org/en/article/i...
I hope the pain and suffering will end, that the flow of casualties will stop and that I won’t have to witness another repatriation.
Because although we watch movies and TV shows that depict death so casually, we should never forget that every life lost is a tragedy.
- Niamh
On the first repatriation I took part in, people lined the road, throwing flowers as we drove back from the border, our lorries bearing human remains of fallen soldiers.
In 31 years of forensics, I’ve never cried. But seeing that outpouring of grief brought a lump to my throat.
During repatriations we act as a neutral observer, supporting efforts to ensure that the process is done with dignity and respect.
There have been more than 50 of these transfers since 2022.
👉 More on our neutral role: www.icrc.org/en/article/n...
In every repatriation photo, you’ll see us dressed in scrubs, masks, and gloves.
Even though we don’t directly handle the remains, we’re in close proximity to them. Wearing it also sets a positive example for the standards that should be applied when dealing with human remains.
I’m back for my last day of posts. Part of my job is observing the repatriation of human remains, mostly soldiers, between Russia and Ukraine.
No matter what side they fought for, every death is a tragedy.
📸Me on the left (in scrubs and a mask), observing a repatriation.
It’s not CSI. It’s about protecting someone’s dignity in death.
Tomorrow, I’ll tell you about how we support the transfer of human remains between Russia and Ukraine, which allow the fallen to return to their families and be buried with the respect they deserve.
- Niamh
I have every respect for Ukrainian forensic staff. I'm not a local - I can leave, but this is their reality. No country could easily deal with this scale of human loss.
📸 Some of the amazing staff, Ruslan and Nataliia, who work for the State Scientific Research Forensic Centre.
They take samples from bones and teeth to extract DNA, which is crosschecked with DNA from families searching for missing relatives.
Every DNA match is an answer…but it’s never the answer a family hopes for.
📸 DNA samples being extracted at a forensic lab.
For Ukrainian forensic teams, identification doesn't start in the lab - it starts where human remains are found.
Every detail is photographed and documented, from clothing to personal items.
📸 Tech devices for example, can help ID the dead (photo taken during training).
