LILONGWE-(MaraviPost)-As the World Red Cross and Red Crescent Day falls on May 8 , every year, presidents of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) and the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) issued a joint statement mourning the loss of humanitarian workers and calling for immediate global action to uphold international humanitarian law.
“This year, we mark World Red Cross and Red Crescent Day with heavy hearts,” said ICRC President Mirjana Spoljaric Egger and IFRC President Kate Forbes.
“Already in 2025, we have lost 10 colleagues following the deadliest year on record for our Movement, in which 38 staff and volunteers were killed in 2024 alone.”
The brutal killing of Palestine Red Crescent Society staff in March 2025 shocked the world and triggered a wave of outrage.
But Red Cross leaders stress that such tragedies are no longer isolated incidents. “From Gaza to Sudan, Ukraine, and the Democratic Republic of Congo, humanitarian workers are increasingly coming under attack while delivering aid, driving ambulances, and reaching vulnerable communities on the frontlines.”
“Every attack on a humanitarian is an attack on the community they serve,” the statement emphasized. “It is a betrayal of the rules of war and a blow to our shared humanity.”
The leaders warned that if the current pattern continues, 2025 could surpass last year as the deadliest for humanitarian workers.
They called on all parties to conflict and states to take immediate and concrete measures to protect aid workers and ensure compliance with international humanitarian law.
“The international community cannot continue to look away as the rules of war are ignored,” the statement urged. “The time to act is now.”
World Red Cross and Red Crescent Day is observed to honor the commitment of humanitarian workers and the legacy of the Movement’s founder, Henry Dunant.
This year’s commemoration comes with a powerful plea: protect those who risk their lives to save others.
Meanwhile, President Lazarus Chakwera Patron of the Malawi Red Cross has urged all Malawians to take a leading role in supporting MRSC by making donations during the Flag Week to enable MRCS reach out to vulnerable communities in the country.
