Switzerland has cancelled a conference on the application of the Geneva Conventions to the occupied Palestinian territories for want of participants, its Foreign Affairs Ministry confirmed on Thursday, after some countries expressed dissatisfaction.
“In the absence of a consensus between the High Contracting Parties, (Switzerland), as depositary State, decided not to convene the meeting,” Foreign Affairs Ministry spokesperson Nicolas Bideau said on X.
The conference was set to address the Fourth Geneva Convention, part of a series of international treaties agreed in 1949 after World War Two, which defines humanitarian protection for civilians living in areas of armed conflict or occupation.
The cancellation amounted to a diplomatic blow for neutral Switzerland, which prides itself on conflict mediation and frequently hosts summits and peace talks.
A member of The Organisation of Islamic Cooperation said that the group had also planned to miss the event, saying the document “did not reflect the gravity of the situation”.
Israel, whose war with Palestinian group Hamas has devastated Gaza, and which has been expanding settlements in the West Bank, stirring fears of annexation, did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
It also criticised the Swiss conference, calling it “part of the legal warfare against Israel”.
Britain felt that, along with many other states, it could not fully support a proposed declaration as a precondition for attending the conference, according to a statement from its diplomatic mission.
Diplomats from other Western states that back Israel also privately expressed concerns about the meeting, although at least some European countries were planning to attend.
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