Humanitarians at War
The Red Cross in the Shadow of the Holocaust
Gerald Steinacher
Reviews and Awards
"A knowledgeable, stringent return to the record and scrutiny of 'good neutrality.'"--Kirkus
"Riveting... An important book that, for the first time, greatly details how the ICRC operated, especially during and after World War II."--Library Journal
"[Gerald Steinacher] is an excellent historian with a good nose for archives." --Wall Street Journal
"Steinacher tracks the record of Carl J. Burckhardt and Paul Ruegger and... reviews the big picture in a critical view."--David Forsythe, Journal of Human Rights
"Humanitarians at War presents a compelling picture of how the policy of sovereign states and those of a private organization exerted a reciprocal influence on life-and-death decisions about humanitarian aid provision and international law."--Kimberly A. Lowe, H-Diplo, H-Net Reviews
"One of the sorry backstories of World War II is found in what the Red Cross did - or, more precisely, failed to do - during the Holocaust. The pointed question was asked aloud by one survivor in May 1945 - 'Where, above all, was the International Red Cross Committee?' - and now it is answered with authority and in compelling detail in Humanitarians at War."--The Jewish Journal
"Steinacher, a historian and professor of Judaic studies, aims his book Humanitarians at War at the 1944-1950 challenges to the ICRC and its recovery, but it is very much about Jews. It indicts ICRC and Swiss conduct early in the war."--The American Jewish World
"Humanitarians at War is a highly welcome addition to the growing literature about humanitarianism and the International Committee of the Red Cross. Based on impressive archival work and careful attention to the secondary literature, the book helps to piece together the puzzle that is the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) at a particularly critical moment in its history... Fascinating."--Michael Barnett, Journal of Interdisciplinary History