Did international organizations like the Red Cross help the victims of Nazi persecution?
Throughout the Second World War, that is, between September 1939, and the summer of 1944, the Red Cross did little to help Jewish victims of Nazi persecution. From September 1939 to June 1941, the German Red Cross sent food parcels to people in need. People imprisoned in the Polish ghettos were not allowed to receive these parcels since the Nazis considered them a threat to the security of the Reich and the German Red Cross obeyed Nazi orders. Nor did the Red Cross take any particular action when the “Final Solution” was launched. They tried to continue sending parcels but made no official protest regarding the imprisonment and slaughter of European Jews. Since the Red Cross was a non-governmental charitable organization, Jewish bodies worldwide, in particular from the United States, questioned their attitude. The Red Cross replied that it could not risk taking action or making protests as they were being requested to do, since the result could be a deterioration of the plight of Europ
