ICRC president: Use of explosive weapons in populated areas requires a collective response

Excellencies, ladies and gentlemen,

This conference takes place at a watershed moment. Around the world, from Sudan to Gaza, Ukraine, the Democratic Republic of the Congo and of course beyond, civilians bear the brunt of armed conflict. 

Children are killed and maimed. Families are uprooted. Homes, hospitals, markets, water systems and schools are reduced to rubble. The abhorrent level of suffering we see inflicted on civilians today reflects a dangerous erosion of compliance with international humanitarian law, and an unacceptable tolerance for the devastation caused by the use of heavy explosive weapons in populated areas.

Today, we must ask ourselves: What kind of warfare are we prepared to accept? Because wars fought without limits on civilian harm cannot be allowed to become the new norm.

This is a global issue that requires a collective response. The Political Declaration on the use of explosive weapons in populated areas offers a pathway to that response. 

The Political Declaration reaffirms and builds on international humanitarian law. The rules protecting civilians and civilian objects were codified at a time with far fewer resources, technologies, and insights to limit harm. Today, we have greater knowledge about the direct and indirect effects of conflict on civilians and greater capabilities to anticipate and reduce civilian harm. 

The Political Declaration embodies our collective recognition that the status quo is no longer acceptable and that urgent change, including restrictions on the use of explosive weapons in populated areas, is required. The use of heavy explosive weapons should be avoided in populated areas. In other words, they should not be used unless sufficient mitigation measures can be taken to limit their wide-area effects and the consequent risk of civilian harm.

Your leadership can redefine how wars are fought. The responsibility for upholding international humanitarian law and promoting improved protection of civilians is a shared duty of all states. 

Here in San José, I urge you to: 

• Voice your deep concern over the intolerable human suffering caused by the use of heavy explosive weapons in cities and towns;
• Call upon and support all parties to armed conflict to protect civilians from the effects of violence and preserve human dignity amid devastation;
• Recommit to implementing the Political Declaration faithfully, and adopt bold measures and practical steps to bring its promise to life;
• Focus on explosive weapons with wide area effects, which are known to cause the greatest civilian harm. 

This is the time to act. The Political Declaration gives us a way forward. Let us walk that path together with resolve, humanity, and courage. I wish you a successful conference. 

Thank you.