President Léopold Boissier, together with his colleagues and staff, yesterday received the Head of the Military Department and Mrs Paul Chaudet, and the Head of the Political Department and Mrs F. T. Wahlen, at the headquarters of the International Committee of the Red Cross in Geneva.

The two Swiss federal counsellors and their wives showed great interest in the talks which were given on the recent activities of the ICRC, and they also visited the Central Tracing Agency's card-index.

The General Delegate of the International Committee of the Red Cross for Sub-Equatorial Africa, Mr. Georges Hoffmann, went to Luanda, the capital of Angola, where he was given a cordial welcome. He was accompanied by Colonel J. V. M. Cabral, Secretary-General of the Portuguese Red Cross, which greatly facilitated both his journey and his contacts. The ICRC delegate discussed various humanitarian problems of common interest with Colonel Cabral and with the authorities. He went to five delegations of the Portuguese Red Cross in Angola, where he visited hospitals, crèches and homes.

Thus, Mr. Hoffmann was able himself to judge the activity carried out by the Portuguese Red Cross in Angola. After visiting Luanda, he left for Lobito and Benguela.

The International Committee of the Red Cross effected a second visit to the camp of Deoli, in the State of Rajasthan, where the Indian Government, following on the conflict with China, had interned a certain number of Chinese nationals resident in its territory. Mr. Max Stalder, ICRC Delegate, went there on June 25, 1963, where he saw 924 internees, of whom about 300 were on the point of being repatriated to China. He was accompanied by Mr. B. Singh-Paul, delegate of the Indian Red Cross.

We would recall that, on December 12, 1962, Mr. Andre Durand, general delegate of the ICRC for Asia, had paid a first visit to that camp.

A mission of the International Committee of the Red Cross has recently stayed in Sanaa. This is the first time that representatives of the ICRC have visited the capital of the Yemen, where they were given a warm and friendly welcome.

The delegates of the ICRC, Mr. Roger Du Pasquier and Mr. Joseph Gasser, were received by Marshal Abdallah Sallal, President of the Arab Republic of the Yemen, who undertook to have the principles of the Geneva Conventions respected. The Chief of State in principle agreed to transmit to Geneva lists of prisoners taken by his troops.

Since the end of the Second World War, the International Committee of the Red Cross has been carrying out a non-stop action to reunite or to help to reunite members of families scattered by war or as a result of events which have taken place in Europe or other continents. The International Review has devoted several articles to this problem, the tragic character of which is all too evident.

The last issue of the International Review contained an article on the book which Mr. Pierre Boissier has just had published: Histoire du Comité international de la Croix-Rouge. The first volume, in French, is available from the Editions Plon, Paris. The German edition is still being prepared.

Messages continue to flow into the ICRC on the occasion of the Centenary of the Red Cross. Following those which were sent by the National Societies, we are publishing below some messages and addresses which have been sent by institutions of various countries:

World Medical Association

L'Association médicale mondiale désire présenter an Mouvemeni de la Croix-Rouge, par votre intermédiate, ses congratulations pour cent années de magnifiques services à I'humanite. Elle rend hommage, ainsi, à la mémoir e de son fondateur et l'initiateur de la Convention de Genève, Jean-Henry Dunant.

We have the honour to inform you of the official recognition, on August 26, 1963 of the Red Cross Society of Madagascar by the International Committee of the Red Cross.

By means of a communication which was delivered in Berne on May 18, 1963, the Royal Government of Saudi Arabia notified the Swiss Federal Council of its accession to the Geneva Conventions of August 12, 1949. This accession, which is free of any reservation, will come into effect on November 18, 1963.

Between November 14 and December 20 of last year, Mr. Pierre Gaillard, delegate, and Mr. Ibrahim Zreikat, who is in charge of ICRC Arabic broadcasts, visited Cairo, Baghdad, Damascus, Beirut and Amman, where they had an audience of His Majesty King Hussein of Jordan, in company with Dr. Abou Qoura, Secretary-General of the Jordan Red Crescent.

As in past years, the message of Mr. L. Boissier, President of the ICRC, was this year recorded by the ICRC Broadcasting and Television Service and sent to 95 countries in all the five continents. It was recorded in six languages (French, German, English, Spanish, Italian and Arabic) and the French or English versions were sent to countries speaking other languages so that each broadcasting organization could make a translation.

The ICRC delegate in Sub-Equatorial Africa, Mr. G. Hoffmann, went some time ago to Mauritius, Reunion and Madagascar. He was warmly welcomed by officials and by the leaders of the Red Cross Societies in these three islands. He was able to observe at first hand the humanitarian work accomplished in these regions and the Red Cross spirit which is very much alive in that part of the world, in countries which, by reason of their geographical position, may seem especially prone to isolation. We therefore believe it interesting to summarize, from the information supplied by the ICRC delegate, some of the activities carried out by the Red Cross in these countries.

The Indian Red Cross has recently sent the ICRC Central Tracing Agency a further list of Indian prisoners in Chinese hands with the information that 1,131 prisoners had been captured by Chinese troops up to November 16, 1962. 2,188 Indian soldiers were captured subsequent to this date and the Chinese Red Cross has begun sending the relevant lists. To these figures must be added 716 wounded and sick handed over to the Indian Red Cross, with the bodies of 13 other Indians. More than 3,000 Indian troops would still appear to be detained by China.