TEHRAN – The Welfare Organization has organized a network of some 20,000 of volunteers to help provide a wide range of services, particularly medical and welfare services, to people affected by the U.S.-Israeli aggression.

The network includes ordinary people, medical specialists, psychologists, and social workers, IRNA reported.

Over the past few months, particularly during the recent war, public participation and volunteering have noticeably developed.

The Welfare Organization has hold several meetings with the volunteers in different provinces of the country to plan and coordinate their activities, and derive maximum benefits from their high capacity. 

The result has been great, and the volunteers provide services to different strata of society. 

The network of volunteers help to deliver generous donations faster and more targeted to the needy. 

Apart from medical and essential supplies, volunteers have helped repairing damaged houses.

More than 69,000 essential goods have been distributed among the beneficiaries.Benefactors have also donated over 235 billion rials (about 160,000 dollars), to the Welfare Organization so far.

The raised money will be used to meet part of the beneficiaries’special needs. 

According to the latest report by the head of the Welfare Organization, Javad Hosseini, 18 daily care centers affiliated with the Welfare Organization were damaged in airstrikes across the country, behzitsi.ir reported.

Moreover, 30,000 families under the coverage of the Welfare Organization have been impacted by the war, and they need immediate support. Also, two beneficiaries with disabilities were martyred.

A total of 956 houses, belonged to families under the support of the organization, were damaged, of which 41 were destroyed. 

Protecting civilians in wars

Over the past 60 years, civilians have been the main victims of the wars; hence their protection in armed conflicts is regarded a cornerstone of international humanitarian law (IHL).

However, the United States and Israel forces have been launching violent attacks on Iran targeting residential areas, and bombarding health, educational, and sport infrastructures. 

Their violation of IHL has been confirmed and condemned by many individuals, media, and international organizations worldwide. 

“The principle of distinction between civilians and combatants is an important principle of the international humanitarian law; it only justifies targeting armed forces. 

Civilians have to be treated with respect. Even political officials who are not directly involved in wars are not legitimate targets. It highlights that injured military forces should not be targeted, let alone rescuers, children, and health staff, and in case the invasion of military targets would bring about too much damage to civilians, it is better not to be carried out,” Behzad Saberi, an international law expert, said in an interview with IRNA.

The protection of civilians extends to those who try to help them, including medical staff, humanitarian and relief organizations that are providing essential goods such as food, clothing, medical tools, and parties to a conflict should not violate the law. 

In the second World War, and its subsequent conflicts, a large number of civilians suffered huge hostilities, witnessing a large scale of war crimes against humanity. 

Four Geneva Conventions of 1949 were updated in response to these war crimes. Pursuant to the Geneva Conventions of 1949 and their Additional Protocols, medical units, hospitals, rehabilitation institutions, and humanitarian facilities enjoy special protection. 

Parties to a conflict are under a binding obligation to respect the fundamental principles of distinction, proportionality, and precaution.

These principles, recognized as customary and peremptory norms of IHL, prohibit attacks against civilian objects and any conduct resulting in civilian casualties. Violations of these obligations may amount to grave breaches of IHL 

Four Geneva Conventions was later strengthened by Additional Protocol I of 1977, which requires the absolute distinction between civilians and combatants.

But, as ever, civilians, particularly women, children, and displaced people are suffering the brunt of war. 

On the very first day of the war outbreak, February 28, a primary school, named Shajareh Tayyebeh, in Minab, Hormozgan province, was targeted in Zionist-American strikes, leaving tens of innocent individuals dead and wounded behind, depicting heinous acts and atrocity of the U.S.-Israeli criminals.

The schools are not merely buildings; they are protective spaces whose destruction results in loss of lives and long-term social harms. 

It was not the first time that educational centers are targeted. There have been news on schools destructions before, killing innocent students whose only crimes were their presence in classrooms.