GENEVA (dpa): The Red Cross warned of further escalation in the military conflict in the Middle East and called for the rules of war to be respected in a statement issued in Geneva on Saturday (Feb 28).
"The military escalation in the Middle East is igniting a dangerous chain reaction across the region, with potentially devastating consequences for civilians," Red Cross President Mirjana Spoljaric said after open hostilities broke out among Israel, the US and Iran.
"Upholding the rules of war is an obligation and not a choice," she added. Spoljaric urged that all four Geneva Conventions should apply.
Civilian infrastructure such as hospitals, homes and schools had to be spared, and medical personnel and first responders must be allowed to carry out their work safely, she added.
The Red Cross said it had teams on the ground in Iran, Israel and elsewhere in the region.
The organization - formally the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) - is tasked with assisting civilians and prisoners of war in conflict zones.
Spoljaric also noted that "humanitarian aid cannot match the pace or scale of suffering caused by continuous conflict; political will is needed to achieve peace and prevent further death and destruction." -- dpa
