Geneva: The Swiss Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced on Thursday that the Conference of High Contracting Parties to the Fourth Geneva Convention, which was scheduled to be held on Friday in Geneva, has been canceled due to "lack of necessary will to convene it." In a statement issued from Bern, the Swiss Foreign Ministry said, "The decision to cancel the conference came after extensive consultations with the High Contracting Parties, which revealed 'deep disagreements' that prevented sufficient international consensus to ensure the holding of the conference and the adoption of a final declaration on the protection of Palestinian civilians." The Islamic Group and the Arab Group in the United Nations and other countries supporting Palestine had decided to boycott the conference in opposition to the draft final declaration.
According to Kuwait News Agency, the UN General Assembly, in a resolution adopted on September 18, 2024, mandated Switzerland as the depositary state to convene the Conference of High Contracting Parties to the Geneva Conventions in light of the escalating violations threatening respect for international humanitarian law in the occupied Palestinian territories.