Red Cross employee allegedly broke policy with anti-Israel posts

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The Red Cross has launched an investigation after one of its senior employees allegedly posted anti-Israel content on social media, in violation of the organization’s strict commitment to neutrality.

The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) employee, Haythem Abid, was identified in an investigation by UN Watch, a pro-Israel group that monitors the United Nations and other non-governmental organizations.

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According to social media posts screenshotted by UN Watch, Abid allegedly participated in anti-Israel protests, called Israel’s fight against Hamas “terrorism” and denounced his employer’s commitment to neutrality.

“F–k neutral s–t, today being neutral is taking a side,” Abid allegedly wrote in a Facebook post on Oct. 18, just 11 days after Hamas massacred about 1,200 people in Israel.

The ICRC website relays “neutrality” as one of seven fundamental principles.

Abid is the ICRC head of office in Algeria and director of the Libya sub-delegation, according to UN Watch.

His continued employment casts a shadow upon the ICRC as a whole

The ICRC “is aware of social media posts allegedly made from a personal account of an ICRC staff member,” said spokesperson Jessica Moussan in an emailed statement.

“All ICRC staff members agree to and are bound by a code of conduct and we are now investigating this matter thoroughly in line with our procedures, values, and principles.”

Abid’s social media accounts say that he is based in Montreal, but his office is based in Algeria, the Times of Israel reported.

“The ICRC confirms that we do not have an office in Montreal, nor is the individual alleged to have made these posts working for the ICRC in Canada,” Moussan said.

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UN Watch called on the ICRC to “immediately terminate” Abid’s employment.

“The volume and severity of Mr. Abid’s posts that justify the October 7th massacre, portray Hamas as beloved by its tortured hostages, and falsely accuse Israel of ‘genocide,’ not to mention his marching with a Palestinian flag in a march organized by antisemitic groups, are such that his continued employment casts a shadow upon the ICRC as a whole,” UN Watch executive director Hillel Neuer told The Times of Israel. “We are calling on the ICRC to take swift and decisive action and protect the integrity of their humanitarian mission.”

The Facebook account cited in the investigation by UN Watch belongs to an Ethan Abid, but the account uses the same photo as Haythem Abid’s LinkedIn account. In it, Abid openly shows his face and he is posing in front of an ICRC plane.

Abid was hired by the ICRC in 2018 as a field protection delegate and has since become a head of office, according to the UN Watch investigation.

Abid has made several anti-Israel social media posts since the October 7 attack, according to UN watch.

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In one Facebook post, Abid is holding a Palestinian flag at an Oct. 22 protest co-organized by Montreal4Palestine, which reportedly handed out candies on October 7. He also went on Facebook live on Dec. 2 at an anti-Israel rally.

According to UN Watch, Abid shared a Hamas propaganda video to Facebook on Nov. 14 that “praises the fact that Israel has been unable to defeat Hamas, claims Hamas treats hostages well, shows scenes of October 7th, and claims that God is on Hamas’ side so Israel will always fail.”

In Oct. 25 Facebook posts, Abid calls the Israel-Hamas war a “genocide.” He also claims Israel “is not fighting terrorism, it is terrorism.”

Abid’s social media accounts were taken down after the investigation was posted. National Post and other media have not been able to reach him for comment.

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