Fourth Geneva Convention
The Geneva Convention relative to the Protection of Civilian Persons in Time of War, more commonly known as the Fourth Geneva Convention and abbreviated as GCIV, is one of the four treaties of the Geneva Conventions. It was adopted in August 1949, and came into force in October 1950.[1] While the first three conventions dealt with combatants, the Fourth Geneva Convention was the first to deal with humanitarian protections for civilians in a war zone. There are currently 196 countries party to the 1949 Geneva Conventions; importantly, both the United States and Israel are parties to the Fourth Geneva Convention.[2]
The Fourth Geneva Convention deals with protected civilians in occupied territory.[3]
Fourth Geneva Convention Conferences[edit | edit source]
To date, there have been three "conferences of high contracting parties to the Fourth Geneva Convention" convened to investigate violations of GCIV — all of which have focused on Israeli violations in its conduct in the occupied Palestinian territories. In light of the devastating civilian death toll during Israel's 2023 war on Gaza, calls have been made to convene a fourth such conference by Human Rights Watch, Amnesty International, and the International Commision of Jurists (among others),[4] but the Biden administration is attempting to pressure Swiss officials to prevent such a conference in 2024.[5]
1999 Fourth Geneva Convention Conference[edit | edit source]
Source[6]
2001 Fourth Geneva Convention Conference[edit | edit source]
Source[7]
Source[8]
2014 Fourth Geneva Convention Conference[edit | edit source]
Source[9]
- ↑ "Convention (IV) relative to the Protection of Civilian Persons in Time of War. Geneva, 12 August 1949". International Committee of the Red Cross.
- ↑ "Geneva Convention (IV) on Civilians, 1949". Treaties, States parties, and Commentaries. 23 March 2010. Retrieved 28 March 2018.
- ↑ Douglas P. Lackey (1 January 1984). Moral Principles and Nuclear Weapons. Rowman & Littlefield. p. 213. ISBN 978-0-8476-7116-8.
- ↑ "ISRAEL/OPT: JOINT SUPPORT FOR CALL FOR A CONFERENCE OF HIGH CONTRACTING PARTIES TO THE FOURTH GENEVA CONVENTION 1949 - Amnesty International" (Press release). Amnesty International. 2023-11-22. MDE 15/7469/2023. Retrieved 20 December 2023.
- ↑ Akbar Shahid Ahmed (2023-12-20). "Amid U.N. Security Council Intrigue, U.S. Privately Moves To Block Another Option For International Accountability For Gaza". HuffPost. Retrieved 20 December 2023.
The Biden administration is finalizing plans to urge Switzerland to reject a request from Palestine and its supporters to hold a conference on violations of the Geneva Conventions.
- ↑ "Conference of High Contracting Parties to the Fourth Geneva Convention: Statement - The Question of Palestine". Geneva, Switzerland: United Nations. 1999-07-15. Retrieved 20 December 2023.
- ↑ "Conference of High Contracting Parties to the Fourth Geneva Convention" (Press release). International Committee of the Red Cross. 2001-05-12. Retrieved 20 December 2023.
- ↑ "Conference of High Contracting Parties to the Fourth Geneva Convention: The Question of Palestine". United Nations. 2001-12-05. Retrieved 20 December 2023.
- ↑ Lanz, Matthias; Max, Emilie; Hoehne, Oliver (December 2014). "The Conference of High Contracting Parties to the Fourth Geneva Convention of 17 December 2014 and the duty to ensure respect for international humanitarian law" (PDF). International Review of the Red Cross. 96 (895/896): 1115–1133. doi:10.1017/S1816383115000648. Retrieved 2023-12-20.