A leading human rights lawyer has condemned the Red Cross’s confidentiality policy as ‘colluding in the secrecy’ of regimes that torture and breach the rule of law, and called for its charitable status to be questioned.

Speaking at an international conference on penal abolition held in London last week, Louise Christian, co-founder of London firm Christian Khan, said: ‘A large number of people are being held without charge in Iraq and Afghanistan, the US is not bound by the Geneva Convention or international human rights law and we know torture is going on. The Red Cross’s policy lends succour to these regimes.’

Dominik Stillhart, deputy director of operations at the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), said: ‘Confidentiality allows the ICRC to build trust, open channels of communication and influence change.’

Stillhart added that the organisation’s policy was to take up concerns of abuse with the authorities involved. ‘Just because we don’t speak out publicly on some issues, doesn’t mean that we are silent,’ he said.