The sudden death at Casablanca of Mr. Camille Vautier, has deprived the International Committee of the Red Cross of a particularly useful colleague who has rendered it the most distinguished services as delegate in Morocco. He started his activities in 1943 at a time when the ICRC had to carry out extremely heavy tasks on behalf of the victims of war throughout the world. Mr. Vautier made more than 90 visits to prisoner-of-war and civilian detention camps in Morocco. He took at the same time an active part in important distributions of relief organized in favour of German and Italian prisoners in French hands.

After having completed his mission, Mr. Jacques de Heller, ICRC delegate, returned, from Algeria after visiting some fifty Moroccans held captive by the Algerian forces following the frontier conflict in the autumn of 1963.

Mr. Marcel Boisard, ICRC delegate, paid a visit to the Red Crescent hospital at Cairo, where he met Dr. Galal Moussa, head of the orthopaedic section.

Two National Red Cross Societies have wished to demonstrate their appreciation of Mr. Léopold Boissier, who recently resigned his office as President of the ICRC, by conferring their highest awards on him. The citation accompanying that of the Irish Red Cross mentions the exceptional services rendered by Mr. Boissier to mankind and to the Red Cross during the grave international crises of the past few years.

There has been a recent intensification of military operations in various parts of the Yemen where the civil war continues between the Republican Government of Sanaa and the Imam El Badr, entrenched in the mountains which are difficult of access. This situation accentuates the importance of the task assumed by the International Committee of the Red Cross whose medical personnel sent to the spot is caring for the largest possible number of victims. Conditions of work, in view of the seasonal oppressive heat, are extremely hard, but the ICRC delegates are none the less continuing their mission of which the present events demonstrate the absolute necessity.

As in previous years the annual accounts of the ICRC have been audited by the Société fiduciaire romande OFOR S. A. (auditors recognized by the Swiss Federal Council and the Commission fédérale des banques) which certified the financial position of the International Committee for 1963 to be correct, as shown below.

Mr, Geoffrey G. Senn, delegate, and Mr. Laurent Marti, assistant-delegate, are at present in the Congo where the International Committee is faced with urgent problems such as the hardships inflicted on the population as well as on fugitives and refugees from the regions where fighting is going on. The wounded and the sick, the shortage of medical supplies, conditions of detention in various places, all have given rise to innumerable negotiations by the two delegates. In the course of his discussions both with the leaders of the anti-government factions and with the authorities, Mr. Senn insisted that the essential humanitarian principles of the Geneva Conventions should be observed.

In 1960 the Government of Nepal requested the International Committee of the Red Cross to lend assistance in order to attend to the besetting problem which arose from the arrival in that country of Tibetan refugees. In response, the ICRC decided, apart from other measures, to establish an agricultural colony in a highland valley in central Nepal.

Mr. Juan José Gómez de Rueda y Abril, on his return from Mexico, where he passed several months during which he took part in the highly effective activities of the National Red Cross, presented a report on November 5, 1964 at an ICRC's plenary session. He described the problems facing a National Society in a country which is fully expanding, the urgent tasks it is required to undertake and its need to continue and strengthen the bonds with the Geneva institution.

Upon Mr. René Dovaz' resignation at the end of 1963 from his office as Director of Radio-Genève, when he also retired as Broadcasting Adviser to the ICRC, the International Committee desired to express to him, in the course of an informal meeting held in February, its profound appreciation and also to present him with the institution's silver medal.

Last month the International Review published an article on the tasks which the ICRC has undertaken during the past few months in the Yemen. The conflict in that country having been prolonged, the needs of the humanitarian action are consequently increasing. We now recall the various phases of the ICRC's intervention, in particular since November 1963.

It is thanks to the work of the International Committee of the Red Cross and its Central Tracing Agency in Geneva that prisoners of war captured in the Yemen, are able to correspond with their families. The humanitarian aspect of this work is illustrated in innumerable messages of gratitude. A few brief examples are quoted below :

“Thanks to your message, we now know that our son Arafa is alive … may God be with you so that you may continue to succour your fellow-men.” The writer of this latter also wrote to his son who was a prisoner : “… we put our trust in God; the day of your return will be a day of celebration … be of good courage ….” Other letters of thanks are received by the ICRC which, merely by transmitting messages from soldiers, was able to alleviate the anguish of relations who were without news of them.

During the Presidential Council meeting on September 24, 1964, the International Committee took leave of a staff member with fifty years service to her credit. Miss M.-L. Compagnon began working with the International Prisoners of War Agency in October 1914, at that time installed in the Rath Museum in Geneva. From 1919 onwards she was a member of the Secretariat staff of the ICRC, which grew in importance progressively with events, e.g.: the Abyssinian war, the Spanish civil war, the Second World War of 1939. At that time Miss Compagnon was working in the Central Agency for Prisoners of War, where she attended to the recording of mail. Later she was attached to the Delegations Bureau. Subsequently she joined the General Secretariat and since 1955 was a member of the Department responsible for the publication of the International Review.