Three staff members of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) were killed on Thursday when shelling struck a planned aid distribution site in the Donetsk region. Two additional ICRC staff members were wounded in the attack.
The ICRC reported that the distribution of humanitarian aid had not yet begun, and no residents were affected by the explosion.
ICRC President Mirjana Spoljaric condemned the attack, stating, “I condemn attacks on Red Cross personnel in the strongest terms. It’s unconscionable that shelling would hit an aid distribution site. Our hearts are broken today as we mourn the loss of our colleagues and care for the injured. This tragedy unleashes a wave of grief all too familiar to those who have lost loved ones in armed conflict.”
The ICRC team was preparing to distribute wood and coal briquettes to vulnerable households in Viroliubivka village, north of Donetsk city, to help them prepare for the upcoming winter when their vehicles were hit.
ICRC noted that its teams are regularly present in the Donetsk region, with vehicles clearly marked with the Red Cross emblem. This incident adds to a troubling increase in the number of humanitarian workers killed globally over the past two years.
The organization called for adherence to international humanitarian law, emphasizing the need for precautions to ensure that humanitarian workers are not targeted or caught in hostilities.
The ICRC reaffirmed its role as a neutral, impartial, and independent organization, with a mandate rooted in the Geneva Conventions of 1949 to protect and aid those affected by armed conflict and violence worldwide.
