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Cong. urge Swiss on 'Red Diamond'
(JTA) --Two Jewish congressmen are circulating a "Dear Colleague" letter urging the Swiss government to designate a neutral emergency symbol in addition to the red cross and red crescent.
Reps. Gary Ackerman (D-N.Y.) and Henry Waxman (D-Calif.) say the Swiss proposal for a neutral red diamond would allow Israel's Magen David Adom, and other agencies that reject the cross and crescent for religious reasons, to obtain protections guaranteed by the Geneva Convention to bearers of those symbols.
The letter to the Swiss embassy in Washington urges Switzerland to resist those who oppose plans to reconvene the parties to the Geneva Convention, a power reserved to Switzerland. The letter says opponents of the red diamond scheme want to postpone such an arrangement until the Israeli-Palestinian issue is resolved. The convention defines attacks on individuals and vehicles carrying the designated symbols as war crimes. Muslim nations have defeated attempts to accept the red star of David used by Israel's emergency services.
Reps. Gary Ackerman (D-N.Y.) and Henry Waxman (D-Calif.) say the Swiss proposal for a neutral red diamond would allow Israel's Magen David Adom, and other agencies that reject the cross and crescent for religious reasons, to obtain protections guaranteed by the Geneva Convention to bearers of those symbols.
The letter to the Swiss embassy in Washington urges Switzerland to resist those who oppose plans to reconvene the parties to the Geneva Convention, a power reserved to Switzerland. The letter says opponents of the red diamond scheme want to postpone such an arrangement until the Israeli-Palestinian issue is resolved. The convention defines attacks on individuals and vehicles carrying the designated symbols as war crimes. Muslim nations have defeated attempts to accept the red star of David used by Israel's emergency services.
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