Humanitarian aid is now considered to be one of the most noble of activities and ambitions. This reputation leads its promoters, beneficiaries and most witnesses to downplay the problems that helping others is likely to cause. Yet the resources available are derisory compared to the suffering to be alleviated. As a result, helping people is in many ways prejudicial and is often associated with competition for victims, political manipulation, powerlessness and arbitrariness. The ICRC’s (in)action in the face of the Shoah, the reasons for it, the repeated condemnations of this stance, the justifications proffered for it and the remorse to which it gave rise show that these dilemmas are not only harmful, but are also inherent in humanitarian practice.