The two organizations will strengthen their partnership.
Magen David Adom, which has been Israel’s representative to the International Committee of the Red Cross since 2006, signed an agreement with the ICRC to continue in that role.
“The ICRC is pleased to begin the Jewish new year by reaffirming and strengthening our partnership with the MDA,” says Alexandra Mangon, head of the delegation of the International Committee of the Red Cross. “MDA provides an essential service, and we are proud to have MDA as a member of the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement family. This continued cooperation will mean improved preparedness and response in the face of complex emergencies that positively impact the most vulnerable communities.”
Among the goals in the new agreement, MDA will train local authorities in other countries, particularly in disaster-prone areas, and teach them how to assess humanitarian needs based on MDA’s own vast experience responding to disasters on ICRC missions, including MDA’s response to earthquakes in Haiti, Nepal, and, earlier this year, Turkey.
It was also agreed that MDA would continue to participate in joint training exercises to better prepare the organization for responding to complex incidents, such as earthquakes or conflicts, such as the war in Ukraine.
“The long-term partnership between MDA and the ICRC is based first and foremost on the humanitarian values shared by both organizations,” said MDA’s director-general, Eli Bin. “This partnership improves the preparedness for complex emergency and disaster situations, and this way we can strengthen the humanitarian response capabilities for the population, both here in Israel and across the world.”
