ICRC in constant contact regarding further hostage releases from Gaza
Published: Tuesday, Dec 19th 2023, 17:20
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The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) is working around the clock to secure the release of further hostages abducted by terrorists from Israel in the Gaza Strip. It is in constant contact with the Israeli government and the Palestinian organization Hamas, which rules the Gaza Strip, said ICRC head Mirjana Spoljaric in Geneva on Tuesday. Taking hostages violates international humanitarian law, which the ICRC is supposed to uphold. She demanded their unconditional release. She made it clear: "We are not negotiating. We are not involved in political discussions."
An agreement between the parties to the conflict must precede any release, said Spoljaric. The ICRC is ready to organize the handover of the 109 hostages who have already been released. These are complex and life-threatening missions. She rejected reports in which the ICRC mission was condescendingly described as a "cab service" for the hostages.
Spoljaric has just returned to the ICRC headquarters in Geneva from a trip to Gaza, Tel Aviv and Doha, among other places. In Doha, she spoke with the Hamas leadership. These talks are always concrete and detailed, she said. The ICRC is strictly neutral and talks are always confidential, so she did not want to give any details about the content.
Their teams in Gaza had no access to the remaining 130 or so people in the hands of Hamas and other terrorist groups. They would also not have been able to pass on any medication for them.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had called on Spoljaric in Tel Aviv to put public pressure on Hamas. "Public accusations are not a tool that has proven to be effective," she said. "Giving up our neutrality and switching to public accusations would make us irrelevant."
©Keystone/SDA
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