Switzerland cancels Geneva Conventions meeting on Palestinian areas

By Emma Farge

GENEVA (Reuters) -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.

The country had invited 196 parties to the conventions to participate in the March 7 conference in Geneva on the situation of civilians living in the West Bank, Gaza and East Jerusalem, but then told them the gathering had been cancelled, four diplomatic sources told Reuters earlier.

"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 protections 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.

The Palestinian ambassador to the United Nations in Geneva, Ibrahim Khraishi, told Reuters earlier that his delegation did not plan to attend the event, criticising a draft declaration circulated among participants.

"We want the international community to take concrete measures and this fell short of expectations," he told Reuters, saying such measures could include economic or diplomatic steps against Israel. "What we want is for the Geneva Conventions to be implemented."

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 militant 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.

(Reporting by Emma Farge; editing by Toby Chopra and Mark Heinrich)