Complying with IHL in large-scale conflicts: How should states prepare to allow and facilitate delivery of humanitarian relief?
Complying with IHL in large-scale conflicts: How should states prepare to allow and facilitate delivery of humanitarian relief?
Large-scale armed conflicts consistently sever the systems that sustain civilian life, leaving populations without essential services or access to basic goods. International humanitarian law (IHL) sets out clear obligations for states to anticipate these foreseeable humanitarian needs and to ensure that impartial relief can reach affected communities swiftly and safely. Yet from customs hurdles to restrictive regulatory frameworks, many of the barriers to life-saving assistance are rooted not in conflict itself, but in peacetime choices.
In this post,part of the “Complying with IHL in large-scale conflict” series, ICRC Legal Adviser Ellen Policinski examines how states can proactively shape legal, administrative, and logistical systems that enable, rather than obstruct, humanitarian relief in moments of crisis. She underscores that meeting IHL obligations requires advance preparation – from easing import restrictions to ensuring postal and customs exemptions – so that when conflict erupts, assistance can move without avoidable delay.
Explore why advances in technology and today’s battlefield realities undermine the military utility of anti-personnel mines, reinforcing the urgency of upholding the norm against their use.
Discover how recent ICRC research offers five insights to strengthen humanitarian action in contested territories, where shifting armed control profoundly shapes people’s lives.
Find out how IHL obligations extend beyond preventing attacks on hospitals, requiring states to facilitate medical consignments and essential services so facilities can maintain their function.
Learn how families of the missing transform grief into connection, using advocacy and dialogue to build peace across former frontlines in Bosnia and Herzegovina, Cyprus and Nepal.
See how the latest Review edition addresses international legal rules on the protection of the dead, focusing on contemporary wartime realities and the humanitarian responsibilities.
IHL in Action: New Case Study! See how a dedicated training initiative can strengthen IHL awareness through structured instruction, international collaboration, and mission-focused learning—enhancing participants’ capacity to protect civilians and uphold responsible conduct.
Explore how humanitarian action contributes to prospects for peace. Drawing on research into the ICRC’s operations in Colombia, Northern Ireland and Yemen, this report is informed by both academic and practitioner literature.
Discover the new ICRC Commentary as it provides legal clarity and practical measures to implement the Safe Schools Declaration and protect students’ safe access to education in armed conflict.
Find out how the second round of state consultations in November and December are galvanizing the political commitment of the international community to IHL.
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Contribute to“Emerging Voices” series: Share your insights and influence the discourse on humanitarian law and policy.
For the millions of people in countries reliant on humanitarian assistance, greater support is desperately needed to save lives and avert further suffering. You can help the people you are reading about.
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