The International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies mourned the death of an Iranian aid worker killed in an airstrike in northwestern Iran, and called for the protection of humanitarian workers.
The IFRC said Alireza Sohbatlou, a 35-year-old relief worker with the Iranian Red Crescent Society (IRCS), was killed on the morning of March 31 in Zanjan province while providing humanitarian assistance.
At the time of the strike, he was at the Hussainiya clinic delivering aid to those in need when a nearby religious site, Azam Hussainiya of Zanjan, was hit, the statement said.
The organization said it grieves in solidarity with his family, loved ones and colleagues, noting that he was among several aid workers killed while carrying out humanitarian duties.
Alireza was the third Iranian Red Crescent volunteer to be killed in one month of conflict, the IFRC said, adding that three lives had ended while they were saving others.
The IFRC said the Red Crescent emblem is an internationally recognized symbol of neutral, impartial and independent humanitarian assistance, and its use is established by law.
Ensuring the protection of humanitarians wearing the emblem is not only a moral issue but an imperative international legal norm, it said, adding that the safety of those protecting and assisting others must be ensured.
In 2026 alone, ten members of the IFRC network globally have been killed in the line of duty, it added.