There was 'no desire from the other contracting parties to postpone or continue,' says Franz Perrez, head of directorate of international law at Swiss Federal Department of Foreign Affairs - Anadolu A

Switzerland has cancelled a conference on the Geneva Conventions and the occupied Palestinian territories, Bern said Thursday. The country cited a lack of consensus after some countries expressed dissatisfaction with a draft declaration circulated among members.

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,

Switzerland said it will host an international conference on March 7 on the protection of Palestinian civilians in the occupied territories, as called for in a United Nations vote.

Switzerland has invited 196 states who are parties to the Geneva Conventions to participate in a conference next week on the situation of civilians living in the Israeli-occupied territories, a foreign ministry spokesperson said on Friday.

Switzerland has informed states that it has cancelled a conference on the application of the Geneva Conventions to the occupied Palestinian territories for want of participants, three diplomatic sources told Reuters on Thursday.

Event due to start on Friday would have brought together representatives from 196 signatories of Geneva Conventions to discuss plight of civilians in West Bank, Gaza and East Jerusalem