The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) celebrated its 160th anniversary on Friday, Feb. 17.

"We are guided by our principles of humanity, neutrality, independence and impartiality so we can help people most in need," ICRC expressed.

The ICRC co-founder Henri Dunant, after witnessing the horrors of combat, wrote a text about the people suffering in different countries in conflict 160 years ago.

“Houses were riddled with holes, shattered and ruined, and their inhabitants, who had been in hiding, crouching in cellars without light or food for nearly 20 hours, were beginning to crawl out, looking stunned by the terrors they had endured," the text read.

ICRC said the text can still be applied up to this day in suffering countries, including Ukraine, Yemen and Syria.

“After 160 years of work the International Committee of the Red Cross can say the world has made real progress to reduce civilian harm on the battlefield. Yet we still see massive suffering in conflicts today, meaning much more work remains to be done to reduce the pain and heartbreak,” said ICRC President Mirjana Spoljaric.

ICRC said the international humanitarian law continues to set progressive rules and measurement to reduce civilian harm on the battlefield.

It added that over the 16 decades, it has operated in 100 countries with 21,000 workers.

"The ICRC, alongside its partners within the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement, will continue its work to ensure that the neutral, impartial, and independent nature of our humanitarian activities is understood by all, even as new weapons and technologies continue to be introduced," it added.