Edouard Rodier

Director of the Norwegian Refugee Council (NRC) Europe, @NRC_Norway. Tweeting on humanitarian issues from #Brussels

[Itay Epshtain @EpshtainItay]

Let us be clear. The report “Laundering Propaganda” is not a bonafide assessment of humanitarian reporting in Gaza. It is an Israeli State-authored "counter-narrative," produced in the midst of ongoing proceedings before the International Court of Justice @CIJ_ICJ, mounting international scrutiny of Israel’s conduct in the occupied Palestinian territory, and unrefuted evidence of catastrophic humanitarian harm in Gaza.

Its central argument is that @UN agencies, humanitarian actors, and independent experts systematically manipulated information in service of Hamas. Yet the report fails to demonstrate the one thing required to sustain so grave an allegation: evidence of coordinated bad faith. Instead, it proceeds by insinuation, conflating the inevitable imperfections of data collection during hostilities with deliberate institutional deceit. Humanitarian agencies operating in a besieged and devastated territory will necessarily rely, at least in part, on local sources, including health authorities. That is not “laundering propaganda.” It is how humanitarian operations function in modern armed conflict. The relevant question is whether information is transparently sourced, caveated, and revised when necessary, not whether it originates from actors Israel distrusts.

More troubling is the report’s profoundly distorted understanding of neutrality in international humanitarian law. It repeatedly suggests that humanitarian actors lose neutrality when they report civilian deaths, starvation risks, attacks on civilian objects including hospitals, forcible transfer of protected persons, or restrictions on humanitarian access without simultaneously foregrounding Hamas conduct. That proposition has no basis in the law governing humanitarian action. Neutrality does not require silence in the face of human suffering, nor does impartiality require the artificial balancing of every factual statement concerning civilian harm.

The report also proceeds from an apparent assumption that Hamas violations materially dilute Israel’s own legal obligations. They do not. Even where Hamas unlawfully embeds itself among civilians or violates the customary rules of war, Israel remains fully bound by the principles of military necessity, distinction, proportionality, precautions in attack, and by its obligations as occupying Power under the Fourth Geneva Convention, including the duty to facilitate humanitarian relief.

International humanitarian law is not reciprocal. One party’s violations do not license the other’s.

The report is perhaps most revealing for what it omits. There is scarcely meaningful engagement with the International Court of Justice’s Advisory Opinions of 2024 and 2025, the Court’s provisional measures in South Africa v. Israel, the law of occupation, or the extensive ICRC commentary governing humanitarian access and relief operations. Nor does it seriously confront the preventive nature of famine warnings and IPC assessments, which are designed precisely to warn before mass mortality occurs. Instead, the document seeks to reframe humanitarian alarm itself as evidence of political hostility.

In that respect, the report does not read as a forensic examination of evidentiary standards. It reads as an attempt to delegitimize the institutions, legal frameworks, and humanitarian actors documenting the consequences of Israel’s conduct in Gaza, at the very moment those consequences have become impossible for much of the world to ignore.

[Jan Egeland @NRC_Egeland]

After two months of devastating blockade and starvation of Gaza, Israeli officials demand that we shut down the universal aid distribution system run by the UN and NGOs like NRC. They want to manipulate and militarize all aid to civilians, forcing us to deliver supplies through hubs designed by the Israeli military, once the government agrees to re-open crossings.

NRC will stand by our humanitarian principles and will, with all our peers, refuse to take part in this new scheme. We urge donors to do the same.
https://t.co/4dVuyLL3tp

[Jan Egeland @NRC_Egeland]

Listening to Francine and Tantine, representatives of the displaced women in a village outside Kihindo, North Kivu. They have 7 and 8 children respectively.

The vast majority of the community has now returned, leaving camps on the outskirts of Goma.

Now they are back home, but they have struggled to buy food, basic essential items, or to pay the debts they had to take during the conflict.

NRC has been able to support the community with assistance so they can buy what they need, but there are thousands of villages across eastern DRC in the same position that we now have to reach.

[Edouard Rodier @NRC_Rodier]

Congratulations to @hadjalahbib for an impressive hearing before the MEPs today! Clear, structured, and deeply committed—your preparation and dedication truly shone through. A strong and inspiring presence! @nrc_norway is looking forward to working with you and @eu_echo.

[Edouard Rodier @NRC_Rodier]

Great to see @hadjalahbib as EU Commissioner designate but alarmed by the lack of reference to humanitarian aid in her mission letter. With unprecedented global needs, we need a stronger @EU_ECHO hum response! @NRC_Norway

[Edouard Rodier @NRC_Rodier]

@NRC_Norway calling on @vonderleyen to reprioritize EU response to fragile & crises-affected communities. The future of EU aid needs two legs to stand: the #GlobalGateway for @team_europe_ investments must be paired with robust Solidarity solutions enforced by @Europarl_EN #DEVE

[Edouard Rodier @NRC_Rodier]

@david_cvach @MurielDomenach @FranceOTAN Bravo David et bienvenue à Bruxelles!!

[Edouard Rodier @NRC_Rodier]

🚨 SUDAN: 755,000 people face catastrophic hunger in 14 locations. 700,000 refugees fled to Chad in the past year—7 times more than in 2004! The world must act NOW to address this crisis. More info: https://t.co/BrmSyG2nrw #SudanCrisis #Famine #Refugees

[Edouard Rodier @NRC_Rodier]

16m people rely on aid in Syria as the crisis enters 14 yrs. Feared funding cuts risk leaving millions behind & unable to access needed assistance. Early recovery is the way forward. Scaling up investments into sustainable, cost-effective solutions are needed now #syriaconf2024

[Emmanuel Macron @EmmanuelMacron]

Un cessez-le-feu immédiat et permanent à Gaza, la libération de tous les otages, une aide humanitaire massive et une solution politique décisive de paix.

Voilà l’appel que nous lançons avec le Roi Abdallah II et le Président Al-Sissi.

Notre tribune :
https://t.co/ctMpwcXb6E

[Jan Egeland @NRC_Egeland]

As humanitarian organisations, we've seen a lot of suffering. What we're seeing unfold in Gaza now is horrific.

Together, @NRC_Norway, @OxfamAmerica, @CARE, @mercycorps, @RefugeesIntl & @SavetheChildren demand a #CeasefireNOW.

[Première Urgence_Int @premiereurgence]

"Il n'y a pas de grandes crises, ni de petites crises, il n'y a que des tragédies humanitaires. Partout, il faut agir" @AnouchkaFinker #CNH2023

[Jan Egeland @NRC_Egeland]

Promising French Humanitarian Strategy: will defend humanitarian space, double funding, effective protection of civilians & humanitarian exemptions under sanctions/CT-laws. French leadership welcome. We will judge success in real progress for those in need- the “Kivu-test”.

[MSF International @MSF]

#Gaza: ��Whatever impact we're having is thanks to our Palestinian staff. Since day 1 they have been doing everything to save lives. They’re bringing hope in the middle of a nightmare. At the same time, they keep asking: Why has the world forgotten us?” 👇
https://t.co/p9GhUn3wMO

[Norwegian Refugee Council @NRC_Norway]

A humanitarian catastrophe continues to unfold in #Gaza, and the world can no longer wait to act. The cycle of violence against innocent civilians needs to stop.

Sign and share the petition calling for a #CeasefireNOW: https://t.co/ztuBUetq3U

[Jan Egeland @NRC_Egeland]

#Gaza: UK & Germany support a 'sustainable’, but no immediate ceasefire. US, UK & German diplomacy is still way behind realities. It has long been evident that the indiscriminate warfare kill thousands of innocents while making Israel & region less safe. https://t.co/6gTZfv2xh2

[Edouard Rodier @NRC_Rodier]

Today, the @EUCouncil meets in Brussels to discuss the emergency in #Gaza. Last night, @NRC_Norwayjoined fellow NGOs outside the Commission to send a message to EU Leaders:
‼For us to be able to address the vast scale of humanitarian suffering, there must be a #CeasefireNOW

[Jan Egeland @NRC_Egeland]

Today the @EUCouncil meets in Brussels to discuss the war & the violence in Gaza and the Middle-East.
Last night, NRC joined fellow NGOs outside the EU Commission, urging EU leaders to demand that Israel, Hamas & the US agree to an immediate ceasefire.

They must understand:

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[Josep Borrell Fontelles @JosepBorrellF]

I’m appalled to learn that in the middle of a war, the Israeli gov is poised to commit new funds to build more illegal settlements.

This is not self-defence and will not make Israel safer. The settlements are grave IHL breach, and they are Israel’s greatest security liability.

[Jan Egeland @NRC_Egeland]

Today in Paris, at meeting called by President Macron, we NGOs demand an immediate ceasefire in and for Gaza and Israel, and an end to the siege and collective punishment of Gaza.

All states must act to end this appalling loss of innocent lives.

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