International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement

The International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement is not a single centralized aid agency. It brings together three distinct components: the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC), and National Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies. The IFRC lists 191 National Societies in the network. They cooperate under a common humanitarian purpose while retaining different mandates and organizational roles.

National Societies are rooted in their own countries. They act as auxiliaries to public authorities in the humanitarian field while maintaining their identity as part of the Movement, and commonly provide local disaster relief, health services and social support. The IFRC supports and coordinates cooperation among National Societies, particularly in disasters and health emergencies. The ICRC has a distinct role in armed conflict and other situations of violence: it works to protect and assist affected people, supports respect for international humanitarian law, and coordinates Movement activities in those settings. These responsibilities are complementary rather than interchangeable.

The Movement's work is guided by seven Fundamental Principles: humanity, impartiality, neutrality, independence, voluntary service, unity and universality. In practice, these principles express a commitment to relieve suffering according to need, avoid discrimination and preserve the trust needed to reach people in difficult circumstances. The Red Cross, Red Crescent and Red Crystal emblems are recognized signs of protection for military medical services and relief workers in armed conflicts; international law sets precise rules for their use.

The Movement grew from Swiss humanitarian Henry Dunant's response to the suffering he witnessed after the 1859 Battle of Solferino. In 1862, he published a call for organized help for wounded soldiers; a committee in Geneva that included Dunant met in 1863, laying the institutional foundations of the ICRC and an international network of relief societies. In 1864, governments adopted the first Geneva Convention, which required care for wounded soldiers without distinction between sides and established a common emblem for military medical services. The Movement's later activities broadened well beyond battlefield medical aid, but its history remains closely connected with efforts to protect people during war.