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It is rare for a global organization to commit a gaffe so egregious that it does not dominate headlines.
Yet, the International Red Cross has managed to achieve just that by openly partnering with Hamas, a terrorist organization that committed the worst atrocities in the last 100 years (and probably more) — while the whiny mainstream media makes zero fuss about it.
On this platform, we will — because it should be the scandal of the decade.
Any public relations expert worth their salt would tell you that appearing in photos alongside Hamas and other Palestinian terrorists is catastrophic. The Red Cross, however, seems unperturbed by these optics, raising serious questions about its integrity and historical biases — especially against Jews and the State of Israel.
In a statement that should have sent alarm bells ringing in every respectable newsroom, the Red Cross was seen this week eagerly working with Hamas to free Israeli hostages and Palestinian terrorists, as if cooperating with one of the most brutal terrorist organizations in modern history is perfectly kosher for an organization ostensibly devoted to neutrality and humanitarian aid.
The hostage-ceasefire deal brokered between Israel and Hamas provides a damning illustration of the Red Cross’ complicity. On Sunday, 90 Palestinian terrorists were released as part of the deal, with Red Cross representatives meticulously verifying each terrorist’s identity and conducting medical checks.
These same representatives, however, deliberately slowed the process, allegedly to paint Israel as non-compliant. The irony here is both palpable and nauseating: an organization dedicated to humanitarianism aligning itself with those who murder, rape, and kidnap civilians. Meanwhile, Israel, fighting for the return of its abducted citizens, is left to contend with the international community’s indifference — or worse, tacit complicity.
Adding to this troubling picture, Mirjana Spoljaric, the president of the International Red Cross, declared, “We … are ready to facilitate any release operation.” Translated into plain English: Hamas requested their involvement because they trust no one else. Yes, you read that correctly. The terrorists trust the Red Cross. Let that sink in.
This begs a fundamental question: Why has the Red Cross not demanded access to the hostages during their 470-plus days in captivity? Where was this commitment to humanitarian principles when innocent children, women, and the elderly have been locked in Gaza’s underground labyrinth, traumatized and helpless?
Unfortunately, the Red Cross’ recent actions are not an aberration but part of a pattern of antisemitism that dates back decades.
During the Holocaust, the Red Cross infamously failed to condemn the extermination of Jews and other minorities in Nazi concentration camps. Despite ample evidence, the organization refused to take a stand, hiding behind a facade of neutrality that was, in practice, complicity. Even worse, its leadership maintained cordial relations with Nazi officials while turning a blind eye to the systematic annihilation of six million Jews.
This moral failure continued post-war, when the Red Cross helped Nazis escape justice by providing travel documents through its International Refugee Organization. Known as the “Ratlines,” this operation aided war criminals in fleeing Europe, a betrayal of everything the organization claimed to stand for.
Fast forward to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, and the Red Cross’ biases remain glaring. Time and again, the organization has disproportionately criticized Israel while ignoring the egregious human rights violations committed by Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad. Its staff’s current collaboration with Hamas is not a departure from its past but a continuation of a long-standing prejudice cloaked in humanitarian rhetoric.
Adding further evidence to the Red Cross’ questionable alignments is the troubling crossover between its leadership and UNRWA (the UN agency for Palestinian “refugees”). Numerous Red Cross executives, including the aforementioned Mirjana Spoljaric, have held senior positions at UNRWA, an explicitly anti-Israel organization that employs staff (i.e. Hamas operatives) who openly endorse terrorism and antisemitism.
The shared personnel between the Red Cross and UNRWA raises legitimate concerns about whether these biases are being imported into the Red Cross’ operations. This interconnected web of influence undermines the credibility of both organizations and further erodes trust in their purported neutrality.
The stark moral asymmetry in the hostage-ceasefire deal should horrify any impartial observer, such as the Red Cross. Israel requested the release of two children under the age of five, innocent victims of Hamas’ barbarity. In return, the Palestinians demanded the release of a convicted murderer who raped and beheaded an 18-year-old girl.
As far as the Red Cross is concerned, there is no real difference between victims of terrorism and the terrorists who perform it. The American firm wrote in response to last week’s Israel-Hamas truce: “We welcome the announcement of a ceasefire, which allows the release of long-separated hostages and detainees…”
The Red Cross, predictably, is playing its part in legitimizing this travesty, facilitating the exchange without a hint of moral outrage. Their silence is deafening, their complicity undeniable.
In addition, consider the example of Al-Shifa Hospital, which Hamas used as a base during its battles with Israeli forces in early November. Before the current conflict, the Palestine Red Crescent Society (the Palestinian version of the Red Cross) had openly collaborated with Hamas to enhance the hospital’s facilities.
It was widely known among hospital administrators that Hamas operated out of Al-Shifa, yet during the intense fighting in and around the hospital, spokespeople from the Red Cross and Red Crescent repeatedly criticized Israel’s actions while remaining silent about Hamas’ use of the facility as a headquarters.
Throughout these battles, Red Crescent personnel delivered medical supplies and evacuated patients, likely coordinating with Hamas operatives controlling the hospital. Meanwhile, Robert Mardini, the Director General of the International Committee of the Red Cross, publicly condemned Israel’s military actions at the hospital, accusing the country of callousness, yet refrained from addressing Hamas’s exploitation of the medical facility.
When Israeli forces eventually entered the hospital, they uncovered evidence disproving Red Cross claims. Weapons caches, tunnels, and video footage of hostages being brought into the hospital were discovered, along with the body of Yehudit Weiss, a 66-year-old woman kidnapped on October 7th.
A captured Hamas fighter admitted that the hospital served as a base, noting that operatives disguised themselves as medical staff to blend in. He estimated that around 100 Hamas fighters operated in Al-Shifa, particularly in areas like the Intensive Care Unit.
Another individual, Hamuda Riad Asad Shalamah, who had sought refuge at the hospital with his family, recounted how Hamas used the facility to store weapons, describing how rockets and firearms were concealed under mattresses. He also expressed concerns about the risk posed to civilians, highlighting that a single mishap with Hamas’s weaponry could result in mass casualties.
Despite these revelations, the Red Cross and the Palestinian Red Crescent Society have dismissed the claims as false without providing evidence to refute the accusations or to demonstrate that their workers were not present during Hamas's activities in Gaza's medical facilities.
What’s more, Geneva-based monitoring group UN Watch documented all tweets published by the Red Cross between October 8 and December 11, 2023. Well over three quarters of all tweets — 77 percent — criticized Israel. Only 7 percent of tweets were critical of Hamas.
The Jerusalem Institute for Justice also studied the Red Cross’ social media posts. It found that in the days following the Hamas-led massacres and kidnappings in Israel on October 7th, the Red Cross featured no posts, images, graphics, or videos about Hamas’ attacks. Instead, the organization has shown a clear double standard in its public relations, criticizing Israel harshly and repeatedly, while largely giving Hamas’ targeting civilians and blatant violations of the rules of war a pass.
As part of the November 24 to December 1, 2023 truce between Israel and Hamas, the Red Cross was tasked with accessing the Israeli and other hostages held by Hamas. Despite its stated commitment to visiting these hostages and its established connections through previous collaborations with Hamas and the Red Crescent Movement, the visits never materialized.
This inaction mirrors the Red Cross’s conduct from 2006 to 2011 when it failed to visit Gilad Shalit, an Israeli soldier held captive by Hamas in Gaza for five years. Among the current hostages is Doron Steinbrecher, a 30-year-old veterinary nurse who requires daily medication. Her parents, Roni and Simona Steinbrecher, have been desperate for updates on her condition and to ensure she receives the life-saving medicine she needs.
In December, they were invited to meet with the Red Cross, hoping to hear about efforts to reach their daughter and deliver her medication. Instead, they were taken aback when the meeting turned into a lecture from Red Cross representatives, who refused to accept Doron’s medication or offer reassurances that they would find out if Doron is still alive.
Red Cross officials crossly told her parents: “Think about the Palestinian side. It’s hard for the Palestinians; they’re being bombed.”1
The Red Cross’ collaboration with Hamas is not merely a public relations disaster; it is a betrayal of the very principles the organization purports to uphold. This is a story about an institution entrusted with global humanitarian responsibility actively enabling terrorists. It is about a moral failure so profound that it demands scrutiny, accountability, and, ultimately, reform.
More importantly, this story exposes the broader hypocrisy of the international community, which too often holds Israel to an impossible standard while giving its enemies a free pass. If we are to believe in the possibility of a fair and just world, the Red Cross must be held accountable for its actions. Neutrality cannot be an excuse for enabling evil.
Hence, it is well beyond time to acknowledge the cold, hard reality: Beneath the Red Cross’ pristine veneer lies a complex and controversial history of alleged corruption, double standards, and misuse of humanitarianism as a guise for political and operational hypocrisies. A closer look at its global activities, particularly its dealings in politically charged regions like Israel, unveils a pattern of actions and inactions that contradict its stated principles.
The Red Cross may wish to present itself as an impartial arbiter, but its actions tell a different story. When terrorists trust you more than anyone else, it is time to reevaluate not just your image, but your soul.
“Red Cross reprimands Israeli hostage families: ‘Think about the Palestinians.’” The Jerusalem Post.
red Cross is complicit, so many of the "liberal" agencies in the west have been hijacked by the Marxist left rainbow warriors the arrived from our equally hijacked universities. time to clean house
Great article. Tidbit: Dad’s uncle Melvin was WW2 and always insisted that the Red Cross was political. He despised it. Although he was a naval underwater specialist, at some point he was involved in the European (Holocaust) theater and as a kid dad heard him talk about the RC role in assisting nazis to flee. Rome’s Conspiracy—a benevolent appearing cover of spies, contraband and black market arms movement. Israel should be rid of Red Cross involvement. Hamas has zero right for negotiation or conditions.