Geneva Call

23/09/2026

More than 33.7 million people in Sudan depend on aid, and access is repeatedly blocked.

The SLM/A-TC has now adopted a Unilateral Declaration committing to unimpeded humanitarian access, protection of aid workers, and a ban on starvation as a method of warfare.

"The true measure of this declaration will be how these commitments are translated into action on the ground," says Arz Alam, our Sudan Country Director.

🎥 Watch the video to learn more!

17/09/2026

In Iraq, where the volatile security environment continues to affect civilian safety, including through its impact on civilian infrastructure and the return of internally displaced persons (IDPs), Geneva Call recently brought field-level protection concerns into discussions with senior officials and security actors through a series of high-level meetings in Baghdad.

Discussions focused on turning protection concerns into practical action: maintaining dialogue channels on protection and security concerns, strengthening coordination, and reinforcing respect for humanitarian norms.

The delegation met with Mr. Sagvan Murad Jindy, Director General at the Diwan of the Presidency of the Republic of Iraq, to discuss potential areas of future collaboration, particularly in relation to the return and reintegration of IDPs and other returnees to their areas of origin.

Another significant meeting was held with Ms. Ala Talabany, Advisor to the Prime Minister for Women’s Affairs, focusing on the protection and resilience of women and exploring ways to strengthen their constructive role in addressing ongoing protection challenges affecting women across Iraq. Meetings were also held with Lieutenant General Dr. Saad Maan, Head of the Security Media Cell at the General Command of the Armed Forces; Khalid Al-Obaidi, Former Minister of Defense and Head of the Parliamentary Security and Defense Committee; Major General Ali Al-Hamadani of the Ali Al-Akbar Brigade; and a senior official from the Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF).

In these discussions, the senior officials and representatives reaffirmed their strong support for Geneva Call’s mission and engagement plans and expressed their readiness to cooperate with Geneva Call in contributing to long-term peace and stability in Iraq.

We thank all those who took the time to meet with us and for their openness to dialogue and exchange.

Fostering dialogue and collaboration among a wide range of stakeholders is key to strengthening civilian protection in practice and identifying practical ways to respond to protection challenges. This approach underpins Geneva Call’s work across the contexts where it operates, including Iraq.

16/09/2026

Can children be an entry point for conversations with armed groups that are otherwise closed?

That was the question Geneva Call's Head of Humanitarian Diplomacy and Communications Alexandre Munafò put to the room in Doha last week at "Children at the Center", a practitioner workshop organized by the Center for Conflict and Humanitarian Studies and Save the Children International.

From our operational experience, the answer is often yes. Engaging armed groups on child protection opens a door that frequently leads to harder conversations about how these groups fight.

Thanks to Fight for Humanity and the Centre on Armed Groups for their research contributions to this event, which was funded by the EU Civil Protection & Humanitarian Aid.

11/09/2026

This week, a Geneva Call delegation visited Riyadh for a series of constructive exchanges on humanitarian diplomacy and civilian protection.

At the King Salman Humanitarian Aid and Relief Centre (KSRelief), we had a rich and substantive discussion with Dr Hana Omar and her team on our shared determination to strengthen the protection of civilians worldwide, including children, who are often among the most vulnerable and overlooked in armed conflict.

The exchange highlighted strong complementarities between our approaches, as well as valuable opportunities to learn from one another. The ambition of leaving no one behind and moving towards what KSrelief describes as an “unrestricted humanity” resonates deeply with Geneva Call’s commitment to ensuring that no civilian is left without protection in conflict.

We are also grateful to Chargé d’Affaires Yannick Reichenau and the team at the Embassy of Switzerland in Saudi Arabia for their warm welcome and continued partnership. Switzerland and Swiss humanitarian organisations have an important role to play in advancing humanitarian dialogue and action across the region.

We look forward to continuing these exchanges.

07/09/2026

The tools of modern warfare are no longer held only by states. Neither, increasingly, is the power to decide whether civilians are protected.

On 2 September, Geneva Call's Director General Alain Délétroz spoke at an exchange of views with the European Parliament's Committee on Security and Defence, joined by our Head of Operations Atif Hameed, who brought the view from Lebanon, Sudan, Syria, Iraq and the Sahel.

Their message to MEPs: the role of armed groups and de facto authorities needs to be integrated in how the EU analyses conflict and plans its security policy, and civilian protection has to remain the central component of both humanitarian and stabilisation funding.

You can stream the full event here: https://multimedia.europarl.europa.eu/en/webstreaming/committee-on-security-and-defence-ordinary-meeting_20260902-0915-COMMITTEE-SEDE

31/08/2026

A humanitarian organisation walks into a defence committee.

It is not a room that humanitarians are usually invited into, but engaging armed groups on the conduct of war belongs in the security conversation. These groups control territory and, often, the lives of the civilians living there. Reducing harm to civilians is inseparable from shaping the way armed groups operate. Persuading them to accept limits on how they fight is, therefore, vital.

On 2 September, Geneva Call's Director General Alain Délétroz and Director of Operations Atif Hameed will speak before the European Parliament's Committee on Security and Defence (SEDE) on the organisation's role and priorities, specifically across Iraq, Lebanon, Syria, the Sahel and Sudan.

The exchange will also turn to what is changing on the battlefield. Unmanned and autonomous weapons systems are altering how force is used and who bears the cost of it, and the trends are moving faster than the policy around them.

This will be relevant to anyone working on civilian protection, peacebuilding, or European security.

For those in Brussels wishing to attend in person, you can head to the Paul-Henri Spaak Building (PHS) within the European Parliament complex on the third floor (Room 3C050) where the session will be held.

The event will also be livestreamed at 9:15 CEST on the European Parliament’s streaming website. Link below.

bit.ly/45YpVQc

28/08/2026

Que signifie défendre les lois de la guerre lorsque le monde semble y croire de moins en moins ?

Dans un portrait publié par Swissinfo, notre Directeur général, Alain Délétroz, revient sur près d’une décennie au cœur du travail de l’Appel de Genève : dialoguer avec les groupes armés pour mieux protéger les populations civiles, en œuvrant à ce qu’ils respectent davantage le droit international humanitaire.

De l’Ukraine à Gaza en passant par le Soudan, nous sommes témoins d’une érosion préoccupante du respect des normes humanitaires. Et lorsque les États eux-mêmes ne respectent pas les règles auxquelles ils se sont engagés, convaincre les groupes armés de les respecter devient encore plus difficile.

C’est précisément pour cette raison que le dialogue reste essentiel.

Nous dialoguons avec les groupes armés non pas parce que nous soutenons leur cause, mais parce que les populations civiles ont besoin d’être protégées — quels que soient les acteurs impliqués dans un conflit.

Comme le souligne Alain Délétroz : « On ne discute pas des raisons pour lesquelles les gens se battent, mais de la manière dont ils le font et de leur responsabilité vis-à-vis des populations civiles. »

Aujourd’hui, nous dialoguons avec des groupes armés à travers le monde. Et même dans les contextes les plus complexes, nous continuons de constater que le changement est possible : les combattants peuvent adopter des règles, les commandants peuvent sanctionner les violations et les groupes peuvent prendre des mesures concrètes pour protéger les populations civiles.

C’est pourquoi nous continuons à nous engager.

À lire dans son intégralité dans Swissinfo.

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What does it mean to defend the laws of war when the world seems to believe in them less and less?

In a portrait published by Swissinfo, our Director General Alain Délétroz reflects on almost a decade at the heart of Geneva Call’s work: engaging with armed groups to better protect civilians by working to ensure that they respect International Humanitarian Law.

Across conflicts from Ukraine to Gaza and Sudan, we are witnessing a worrying erosion of respect for humanitarian norms. And when States themselves fail to uphold the rules they have committed to uphold, convincing armed groups to respect them becomes even harder.

This is precisely why dialogue matters.

We engage with armed groups not because we endorse their causes, but because civilians need protection — regardless of who the parties to a conflict are.

As Alain Délétroz puts it: “We don’t discuss the reasons why people fight, but rather how they fight and their responsibility towards civilian populations.”

Today, we are in dialogue with armed groups around the world. And even in complex contexts, we continue to see that change is possible: fighters can adopt rules, commanders can sanction violations, and groups can take concrete steps to protect civilians.

This is why we continue to engage.

Read more in Swissinfo (in French).

Rencontrez Alain Délétroz, le défenseur des Conventions de Genève qui sensibilise les groupes armés aux règles de la guerre. Portrait.

26/08/2026

Six rural communities in Arauca, Colombia came together to demand the implementation of IHL and the protection of civilians following dialogue facilitated by Geneva Call.

"All members of armed groups, regardless of rank, must comply with and respect the rules of International Humanitarian Law."

This is what 16 community leaders from six communities in rural Arauca, Colombia said to the armed groups in their territory after years of living with the consequences of the actions of those groups. Anti-personnel mines had destroyed families regardless of affiliation; local leaders were stigmatized after accusations of links to armed groups; and the line between civilian and combatant had been all but eroded.

What they needed was a way to collectively and publicly address the people responsible.

Coming together in a structured dialogue facilitated by Geneva Call, the 16 leaders developed and validated six collective messages grounded in IHL. Their work, which benefited an estimated 1,200 to 1,800 people, was rooted in previous IHL and humanitarian negotiation trainings delivered by Geneva Call.

Geneva Call guided the process and then stepped back to let the communities lead. And that’s exactly what they did.

https://www.genevacall.org/news/six-communities-in-rural-colombia-speak-with-one-voice-on-the-rules-of-war/

19/08/2026

Today is World Humanitarian Day.

It's a day to think about the people behind the headlines: the local responders and volunteers who keep showing up through conflict and crisis.

But the risk they carry isn't abstract. At least 326 aid workers were killed doing their jobs in 2025, and more than a thousand perished over the last three years in the line of duty. Most were locals, helping communities they were part of. That's why the day matters. It is a reminder of how far we still are from keeping these people safe. Our own part in it is often unseen: we carry principled dialogue with armed groups aimed at keeping civilians safe. Humanitarian workers are often caught in the middle of the fighting while doing their part to protect civilians. The work is entangled, painstakingly slow, and it takes many hands.

To everyone serving under impossible conditions today: we see you, and we stand with you.