Mali: Sharp rise in war-wounded

The ceasefire in Gaza has proven vital to saving lives, bringing in humanitarian assistance and sustaining the civilian population.

The ICRC deeply regrets the unprecedented withdrawal of Lithuania from the Convention on Cluster Munitions, which takes effect today. This decision weakens vital protections for civilians and risks exacerbating the threats posed by these weapons, which cause unacceptable harm.

ICRC's Mirjana Spoljaric emphasizes the importance of maintaining the ceasefire to save lives.

In an overnight operation returned the remains of four deceased hostages to Israel and transferred 537 Palestinian detainees to Gaza and the West Bank. In total 642 detainees were released today from places of detention in Israel. The ICRC overnight also returned the remains of another deceased person back to Gaza from Israel following an initial transfer on 20 February. This comes after six hostages were released and returned to Israel on 22 February.