Red Cross associations in Europe, Latin America and Asia are being asked to officially recognize the emblem of Israel’s Magen David Adom, in an effort to bypass the International Red Cross’s continued refusal to do so.
Rabbi Rubin Dobin, international president of Operation Recognition for Magen David Adom of Israel, told the Jewish Telegraphic Agency Thursday that the American Red Cross has already entered into what is known as “bilateral recognition,” by placing the Magen David Adom emblem on its letterhead along with the Red Cross and Muslim Red Crescent.
The American Red Cross, with the support of President Reagan and Congress, has long taken the lead in pressing for international recognition.
Dobin, an orthodox rabbi in Miami Beach, met here Wednesday with Richard Schubert, president of the American Red Cross, and enlisted his support to gain bilateral recognition from other countries.
He said Arab “blackmail” has blocked the numerous efforts to gain recognition for the Israeli organization by the International League of the Red Cross. He noted the league acknowledges that Magen David Adom meets nine of the ten criteria for admission, the tenth being the emblem.
The international league recognizes only the Red Cross and the Red Crescent. But until 1980 it also recognized the Red Lion and Star of Iran. After the Shah of Iran was overthrown, Iran adopted the Red Crescent.
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The Archive of the Jewish Telegraphic Agency includes articles published from 1923 to 2008. Archive stories reflect the journalistic standards and practices of the time they were published.
