Swiss perspectives in 10 languages

Amnesty calls on Switzerland to exert pressure on Israel

destruction
Amnesty called on Switzerland to lobby the United Nations Security Council for an arms embargo against Israel, Hamas and other Palestinian groups as well as sanctions against those responsible for atrocities by the end of the year. Copyright 2024 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.

Non-governmental organisation Amnesty International is calling on Switzerland to exert public pressure on Israel to stop the “genocide” of the Palestinian population in the Gaza Strip.

+ Get the most important news from Switzerland in your inbox

Among other things, Switzerland should summon the Israeli ambassador and publicly demand an end to the violence.

There is “sufficient evidence” that Israel is committing “genocide” against the Palestinian population in the Gaza Strip, Amnesty International announced on Thursday.

The organisation referred to a report it had written itself and called on Switzerland to lobby the United Nations Security Council for an arms embargo against Israel, Hamas and other Palestinian groups and for sanctions against those responsible for atrocities by the end of the year.

More

The Office of the Attorney General of Switzerland should start “structural investigations” to secure evidence according to Amnesty.

Switzerland should also consider a ban on trade with settlements or companies linked to the occupation of Palestinian territories. Amnesty also called for the resumption of humanitarian aid via the UN Palestinian Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA).

Israel has denied accusations of genocide in the past. The country has invoked its right to self-defense after terrorists from Hamas and other extremist groups attacked southern Israel on October 7, 2023 killing around 1,200 people. Since then, Israel has been waging war against Hamas in the Gaza Strip. Thousands of Palestinian civilians have fallen victim to the fighting, for which Israel has been criticised.

A genocide lawsuit filed by South Africa against Israel is currently before the International Court of Justice (ICJ) in The Hague. In May, the chief prosecutor of the ICC also applied for arrest warrants against Israel’s head of government Benjamin Netanyahu, among others.

Translated from German by DeepL/jdp

This news story has been written and carefully fact-checked by an external editorial team. At SWI swissinfo.ch we select the most relevant news for an international audience and use automatic translation tools such as DeepL to translate it into English. Providing you with automatically translated news gives us the time to write more in-depth articles.

If you want to know more about how we work, have a look here, if you want to learn more about how we use technology, click here, and if you have feedback on this news story please write to english@swissinfo.ch.

Teaser: Listen to our Inside Geneva Podcast. Available on all major podcast platforms.

Popular Stories

Most Discussed

News

Swiss Steel maintains plans to cut 130 jobs at Emmenbrücke

More

Swiss Steel to cut 130 jobs in Emmenbrücke

This content was published on Lucerne-based steelmaker Swiss Steel has confirmed it will cut 130 jobs in Emmenbrücke, despite the emergency aid promised by Switzerland’s parliament.

Read more: Swiss Steel to cut 130 jobs in Emmenbrücke

In compliance with the JTI standards

More: SWI swissinfo.ch certified by the Journalism Trust Initiative

You can find an overview of ongoing debates with our journalists here . Please join us!

If you want to start a conversation about a topic raised in this article or want to report factual errors, email us at english@swissinfo.ch.

SWI swissinfo.ch - a branch of Swiss Broadcasting Corporation SRG SSR

SWI swissinfo.ch - a branch of Swiss Broadcasting Corporation SRG SSR