The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) will impose deep cuts to its operations in 2026, slashing almost one-fifth of its annual budget and shedding 2,900 jobs as global donors retreat from humanitarian financing.

“We face a dangerous convergence of escalating armed conflicts, significant cuts to aid funding and a systemic tolerance for grave breaches of international humanitarian law,” ICRC President Mirjana Spoljaric said in a statement on Friday.

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The organisation confirmed that its spending will fall to $2.2bn, warning that the wider aid sector is facing a “financial crisis of unprecedented proportions”.

A spokesperson said the United States remains the ICRC’s largest donor but has reduced its contributions this year, mirroring funding drops from other traditional backers, including the United Kingdom and Germany.

“The ICRC remains committed to working on the front lines of conflict, where few others can operate,” Spoljaric insisted, but warned that “the financial reality is forcing us to make difficult decisions to ensure we can continue to deliver critical humanitarian assistance to those who need it most.”

Governments are diverting budgets towards defence and security, leaving humanitarian agencies scrambling to sustain programmes while conflict, displacement and need continue to escalate.

‘America First’

The shift comes as Washington overhauls foreign assistance under President Donald Trump, whose “America First” agenda has reshaped spending priorities.

The combined cuts have forced the Geneva-based body to roll out one of its most significant restructurings in decades. The job losses amount to roughly 15 percent of its 18,500-strong workforce and include about 200 posts in Geneva, where the ICRC was founded in 1863.

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The organisation said it will merge departments, streamline management and focus on frontline conflict operations to preserve its core mission. Despite the reduced budget, the ICRC insisted it will maintain its presence in Sudan, Ukraine, Israel and the occupied Palestinian territory, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

Around a third of the staff reductions will come through voluntary departures or by leaving positions unfilled.

The ICRC, active in more than 90 countries, supports civilians in conflict zones, visits prisoners of war, and acts as a neutral intermediary. It recently facilitated the transfer of Israeli captives from Gaza and Palestinians held in Israeli prisons under the terms of an October 10 US-backed ceasefire in Israel’s war on Gaza.