24 aid workers killed in Israel-Hamas conflict in 2024

The International Federation of Red Cross (IFRC) and Red Crescent Societies has lost 24 humanitarian aid workers in the Israel-Hamas conflict in 2024, according to president Kate Forbes’ statement on Thursday. She asked all states to respect their neutrality and work of delivering humanitarian aid to war zones and high-risk areas.

In Kate Forbes’ statement, she reported that two more paramedics from the Palestine Red Crescent Society had been killed. In total, the IFRC and the Red Crescent Societies have lost 24 personnel in the Israel-Hamas conflict–20 from the Palestine Red Crescent Society and four from Magen David Adom, a member organization of the IFRC. She expresses concerns over the killing of humanitarian workers, stating, “Each death in this conflict is one too many. We must have our staff and volunteers protected.”

As non-combatants, aid workers are “protected persons” under the 1949 Geneva Conventions and the 1977 Additional Protocols. Article 71(2) of Additional Protocol I provides that states must respect and protect personnel participating in relief actions. Under the Statute of the International Criminal Court, it is a war crime to attack protected persons, such as personnel involved in a humanitarian assistance mission. The UN Security Council has previously called for conflicting parties to respect humanitarian workers. In Resolution 1296, the UN Security Council asked all parties, including non-state parties, to “ensure the safety, security and freedom of movement” of aid workers.

Since its start in October 2023, the current Israel-Hamas conflict has sparked concerns over the legality of each party’s actions. The latest round of air strikes by Israel on refugee camps has killed 45 people and wounded hundreds. On 24 May 2024, the UN Security Council further adopted Resolution 2730 condemning violence against aid workers.