In today's armed conflicts and complex emergencies more civilians suffer than combatants. After the Cold War one could identify a zone of turmoil in which civilian suffering was acute. But one could also identify a zone of stability from which operated a complicated system of humanitarian assistance designed to respond to civilian suffering. Media coverage emphasized the suffering, but never before in world history had such a kaleidoscope of humanitarian actors tried to provide emergency relief during armed conflicts and complex emergencies. Inevitably calls were heard for better organization and coordination, and in 1991–92 the United Nations created a Department of Humanitarian Affairs (DHA).

As soon as the Red Cross was founded, the question of its relationship with war was raised. Indeed, it could be argued that placing the protection of war victims on an institutional basis and creating a reserved area off-limits to violence was tantamount to an official recognition of warfare or a tacit acceptance of the use of force. Some even wondered whether the attempt to regulate warfare without trying to eliminate it was not serving the purposes of the military and political leaders responsible for waging war, who would be able to invoke the notion of “clean warfare” to justify themselves in the eyes of public opinion and before history.

In July 1995 the ICRC's Executive Board asked the Archives Division and the Directorate for International Law and Policy to draw up new rules governing access to ICRC archives. On 17 January 1996 the ICRC Assembly adopted the text submitted by them and instructed the Archives Division to organize a consultation system for the institution's public archives.

(1) The present Rules govern access to the ICRC's archives, which comprise:

• the archives of the ICRC's decision-making bodies;

• the archives of Committee members;

• the archives of the various units at headquarters;

• the archives of individual delegations;

• archival material from other sources which are kept at the ICRC.

A group of researchers in the United States who have set themselves the task of locating the fortunes deposited in Swiss banks by victims — mostly Jewish — of Nazi persecution have laid their hands on a series of documents originating from the Office of Strategic Services (OSS), the American intelligence service which was the predecessor of the CIA. These documents, bearing dates in 1944 and 1945, contain allegations concerning individuals who worked for the ICRC during the Second World War.

A two-day seminar entitled “International humanitarian law: its significance in the modern world” and organized jointly by the department of the Judge Advocate General of the Indian army, the ICRC and the Indian Red Cross Society was held in New Delhi on 28 and 29 August 1996. It was the second seminar of its kind, the first having taken place in 1988.

The Republic of Lithuania acceded on 3 October 1996, without making any declaration or reservations, to the Geneva Conventions of 12 August 1949.

On 11 October 1996 the Argentine Republic made a declaration accepting the competence of the International Fact-Finding Commission, in accordance with Article 90, paragraph 2 (a), of the Protocol Additional to the Geneva Conventions of 12 August 1949, and relating to the Protection of Victims of International Armed Conflicts (Protocol I). It thereby recognizes ipso facto and without special agreement, in relation to any other High Contracting Party accepting the same obligation, the competence of the Commission to enquire into allegations by such other Party.