The Federal Council’s failure to fulfil its obligations as depositary state of the Geneva Conventions and as a member of the United Nations

mw. On 18 September 2024, the United Nations General Assembly mandated Switzerland, as the Depositary State of the Geneva Conventions, to convene a conference of the High Contracting Parties aimed at ensuring compliance with the Fourth Geneva Convention (Protection of Civilian Persons) in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including East Jerusalem. Similar conferences had previously taken place in Geneva in 1999, 2001, and 2014. Delegates were to be the UN ambassadors based in Geneva. While the conference “was not empowered to make binding resolutions, it could reaffirm the rules of international humanitarian law and the obligations of the High Contracting Parties.” In preparation, Switzerland conducted consultations with all contracting parties (196 states) to the Geneva Conventions.¹
A clear mandate from the UN and a great honour and obligation for Switzerland to do everything in its power to ensure compliance with the Geneva Conventions for the benefit of the people exposed to untold suffering in the Gaza Strip, but also in the West Bank and East Jerusalem.

Cancellation of the
Conference by the Federal
Council: A Disgrace for Switzerland

The conference was scheduled for 7 March 2025, but on 6 March – a mere day before – the Federal Council cancelled it, citing insufficient participation and a lack of consensus on a joint declaration.
Swissinfo, Switzerland’s news platform, provided a thorough and factual report on the matter, highlighting the tensions surrounding the draft declaration:

Some Western states, it appears, “sought to keep the conference as neutral as possible, avoiding specific mention of ‘country situations.’” However, as swissinfo.ch aptly points out, “this stance conflicts with the UN General Assembly resolution, which explicitly calls for the conference [to focus] on the ‘Occupied Palestinian Territories.’”² Whether the Swiss Federal Department of Foreign Affairs clearly communicated this UN directive is up for debate.

The 57 members of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation and Palestine itself withdrew their participation, arguing that “the draft declaration failed to reflect the gravity of the situation on the ground and the serious breaches of international humanitarian law by Israel in the Occupied Palestinian Territories.” Switzerland should have ensured that in particular the perspectives of these neighbouring countries were included in a collective statement by the international community.

According to unnamed diplomatic sources, within the Swiss Federal Department of Foreign Affairs “tensions had been rising in recent weeks” – which swissinfo.ch states – due to Israel’s “public condemnation of Switzerland for organising the event, deeming it a component of “lawfare against Israel.”³ One would expect Ignazio Cassis, the Swiss Foreign Minister, to stand firm as the representative of the Depositary State of the Geneva Conventions and unequivocally call on the Israeli occupying power to comply with imperative international law. The Israeli government has been grossly violating the Fourth Geneva Convention on the protection of civilian populations for over one and a half year. This issue, which would have been addressed at the conference in Geneva, has been exacerbated recently by blocking aid supplies and electricity to Gaza and ongoing settler violence in the West Bank.

An international law
expert speaks candidly

Vincent Chetail, Professor of International Law at the Graduate Institute in Geneva, challenges the Swiss Federal Council’s weakening neutrality policy with the clear facts of international humanitarian law. In an interview with swissinfo.ch, he asserted: “This conference is an urgently needed reminder that international humanitarian law must be respected.” While the conference cannot pass legally binding resolutions or impose sanctions, “the conventions themselves are legally binding.” Chetail also expressed himself in clear words about US President Donald Trump’s proposal urging Arab states to endorse the permanent removal and resettlement of all Palestinians from the Gaza Strip: “The Fourth Convention reiterates the prohibition on the forced displacement of Palestinians, which has been a much-discussed topic due to Trump’s wholly unlawful proposal.” He explained: “The prohibition on forced displacement is intended to prevent an occupying power from colonising a land or conducting ethnic cleansing.”⁴
  Chetail also referenced the July 2024 advisory opinion from the International Court of Justice (ICJ): “Some states advocate for the declaration to condemn the illegal occupation of Palestinian territories, given that this illegality has been repeatedly acknowledged by the ICJ, most recently in July.” This demand from Arab states leading up to the 7 March event is clear – those expected to disregard the ICJ ruling are not hard to identify.
  In a personal exchange, Vincent Chetail added, that “the cancellation of this conference is regrettable and above all alarming, as it reflects the states parties’ lack of will to achieve a common text on fundamental obligations to humanity. This speaks volumes about the extreme politicisation of the issue, which has been exacerbated by Trump’s recent announcements. Despite the conference’s failure, Israel and Hamas remain legally obliged to observe international humanitarian law, and other contracting states are required to take all feasible and necessary measures to halt violations of humanitarian law.”
  It is the neutral Switzerland’s duty and obligation to uphold the Geneva Conventions, of which it should be the custodian. Vincent Chetail concludes: “As a depositary state and neutral country, Switzerland has the task of reminding the world, and in particular the politicians of the United States and Israel, that international humanitarian law must be respected under all circumstances and applies to everyone. This is important.” •

¹ “Konferenz von Hohen Vertragsparteien der Genfer Konventionen.” (Conference of High Contracting Parties to the Geneva Conventions) News release of the Federal Council of 14 November 2024
² Mathari, Annegret. “Ist das Humanitäre Völkerrecht noch zu retten? Die Nahost-Konferenz in Genf wagt den Versuch.” (Can international humanitarian law still be saved? The Middle East Conference in Geneva is attempting to do so.) In: swissinfo.ch of 5 March 2025
³ Mavris, Giannis. “Aus für Nahost-Konferenz in Genf – das zeigt, wie gespalten die Welt ist” (End of Middle East Conference in Geneva – this shows how divided the world is.) In: swissinfo.ch of 7 March 2025
⁴ Mathari, Annegret, ibid.