Israel Admitted to Red Cross

After nearly sixty years of statehood, Israel was finally admitted to the International Committee of the Red Cross and Red Crescent. When Israel first tried to join with its ?Magen David Adom?, or Red Shield of David, symbol, the Red Cross was against adding another symbol to the organization. Now, though, over objections from Muslim countries constantly engaging in efforts to de-legitimize or destroy Israel, a new, neutral red diamond shape in which the Star of David can rest or stand on its own, allowing Israeli medics to operate on battlefields with the same recognition given to the Red Cross and Islamic Red Crescent.

The Red Cross, contrary to popular opinion, is merely an inside-out version of the Swiss flag. The Swiss have proudly carried their neutrality with them for years, and the Red Cross while appearing to be simply a Christian symbol with a Christian ethic is a symbol rather of the necessity of saving lives on a battlefield. Muslims, however, when they joined the International Committee of the Red Cross, objected that the Red Cross nevertheless reminded them too much of the Crusades, and so the Red Cross admitted the Red Crescent.

Magen David Adom, the Israeli organization, and its friends have been fighting for years to be recognized along with the rest of the world. The American Red Cross has been amongst the most prominent and consistent friends Magen David Adom has had, Magen David Adom has actually been trying for recognition long before Israel was created in 1948, for efforts have been going on since the organization was begun in the 1930s. Jews in what was then the British-ruled Palestine Mandate and later the State of Israel objected to the use of the cross to denote their organization, which coupled with Islamic resistance resulted in decades of struggle until this week.

                                 

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