What exactly is a humanitarian corridor? We explain to you

The anguish of seeing civilian casualties increase in Ukraine keeps the international community on alert. As Moscow intensifies its strikes in several cities, the two parties accuse each other of complicating the creation of humanitarian corridors aimed at evacuating civilians. But what exactly is a humanitarian corridor? Why is it so complicated to set up? We explain to you.

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1. What is a humanitarian corridor?

It is a passage where there is a ceasefire, therefore in which no one can carry out an attack. It is primarily used to protect civilians in combat zones, explains the director general of Amnesty International Canada Francophone, France-Isabelle Langlois.

“These corridors have two main functions: to evacuate civilians from combat zones to a place of safety and to allow humanitarian aid to reach them. We can think of the delivery of water, food, blankets, medicines and humanitarian workers of all kinds. Once the area is reached, the civilians can decide to stay put or go to other safe areas,” she explains.

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These corridors were born from the Geneva Conventions, international treaties negotiated after the two world wars which dictate the rules of conduct in war zones.

Although the corridors are a good thing in themselves, their establishment marks the beginning of a humanitarian crisis in Ukraine.

“It means that people are not able to get out of where they are without putting their lives in danger,” she says. This means that cities are increasingly besieged and civilians, especially families, are no longer able to flee.”

2. Why are they so complicated to set up and to respect?

After several days of negotiations, Moscow announced ceasefires on Tuesday in the cities of Kyiv, Kharkiv, Sumy, Cherniguiv and Mariupol.

Why were three attempts necessary to succeed in creating humanitarian corridors in Ukraine? Because to establish them, the parties must agree, generally with a third State or an organization. It’s the only way to get there.

“Theoretically, it’s a negotiation based on good faith and trust, but it’s also a standoff in which every detail is studied: route, place of arrival, duration, etc. Nobody wants to look like they’re losing their touch,” she says.

Even when the corridors are formalized, the distrust between the belligerents makes them very fragile, notes for his part François Audet, director general of the Canadian Observatory on crises and humanitarian action.

“There is a great deal of mistrust between the two parties, which means that as soon as you hear even the sound of a cigarette being lit, the fighting resumes and the ceasefire ceases. is not respected,” he explains.

A few hours after the start of the ceasefire in Mariupol, the Ukrainian Ministry of Defense rightly accused Russia of having “launched an attack exactly in the direction of the humanitarian corridor”.

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3. How do leaders use it?

In the current conflict as in all conflicts, these corridors are also used for psychological warfare purposes, notes France-Isabelle Langlois.

“It’s the game of information and propaganda. In this case, when Ukraine refused the Russian offer to evacuate Ukrainian civilians to Russia, Russian leaders accused them of dragging out negotiations and of wanting to use civilians as human shields. We can understand that on the Ukrainian side, we refuse [de les envoyer en Russie], out of fear for our civilians. We don’t know what could happen once they’re there,” she said.

For François Audet, by proposing to send Ukrainian civilians to Russia, Vladimir Putin wanted to send a message to his population and consolidate his disinformation campaign.

“He would like to have images of Ukrainians arriving in Russia so that he can use them and tell his people that they are fleeing from the Ukrainian authorities who were massacring them”, he analyzes.

By claiming attacks on these corridors, the parties can also use them to point the finger at each other and justify large-scale attacks.

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4. What happens if the corridors are not respected?

In theory, failure to respect humanitarian corridors is a serious fault, since it constitutes a violation of international law and is considered a war crime.

An offender who attacks a humanitarian corridor could face trial at the International Criminal Court and face a sentence of up to life imprisonment.

However, the procedures are long and complex, and the perpetrators of war crimes are generally judged long after the acts of which they are accused. The deterrent effect is therefore minimal, which means that there is always the risk that a humanitarian corridor will not be respected, indicates Ms.^me Langlois.

5. How has it been in other conflicts?

Despite the fragility of humanitarian corridors, they have often helped save thousands of lives.

In 1990, the siege of the city of Sarajevo, in Bosnia and Herzegovina, lasted more than three years. Although civilians could not leave the city walls, the population held on because supplies were available and humanitarian convoys managed to get to them.

An operation saved thousands of people in Aleppo, Syria, in 2016.

“The Red Cross had pulled off a masterstroke by evacuating tens of thousands of people during a ceasefire which had been respected,” recalls François Audet.

In that same war, however, the Russians had targeted humanitarian corridors. A scenario that has repeated itself several times in recent years, recalls France-Isabelle Langlois.

“We saw it a lot in Afghanistan, Iraq, Syria, where there was a lot of breaches in humanitarian law and the law of war,” she laments.