GENEVA

The head of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) on Monday warned that attacks on essential infrastructure are harming civilians and risk escalating conflicts beyond control.

"War on essential infrastructure is war on civilians. It must stop. Every effort to de-escalate is critical," ICRC President Mirjana Spoljaric said in a statement.

She cautioned that "deliberate attacks on essential services and civilian infrastructure can amount to war crimes," pointing to damage to energy, fuel, water, and health-care systems.

Spoljaric said the trend is not confined to one region but has become widespread across conflicts, though recent developments in the Middle East are particularly alarming.

"What we have seen in recent days in the Middle East risks reaching a point of no return," she said.

She highlighted growing concerns over nuclear facilities, warning that damage to these sites could trigger "irreversible consequences," noting they are afforded special protection under international humanitarian law.

Attacks on infrastructure have already "punished millions of civilians both near and far from the front lines," she said, warning that such patterns risk normalizing a form of warfare that "strips away our shared humanity."

She stressed that respecting civilian dignity is key to de-escalation and building lasting peace.