POWs must be released and repatriated without delay after the end of active hostilities.ĭuring international armed conflicts, the ICRC has a right to visit prisoners of war to make sure that their treatment and the conditions in which they are being held are in line with IHL. Their internment is not a form of punishment but only aims to prevent them from further participation in the conflict. POWs cannot be prosecuted for having taken a direct part in hostilities, but they may be prosecuted for possible war crimes. IHL also defines minimum conditions of internment for POWs, addressing issues such as accommodation, food, clothing, hygiene and medical care. They are protected against any act of violence, as well as against intimidation, insults, and public curiosity. Throughout their internment, POWs must be treated humanely in all circumstances. What kind of treatment are POWs entitled to? POW status is regulated by the Third Geneva Convention and Additional Protocol I. There is also a possibility for civilians who spontaneously take up arms in a 'levée en masse' to be prisoners of war. Combatants can be members of the regular armed forces, as well as militia, volunteers or other such groups if they belong to a party to the conflict and fulfil certain conditions.Ī small number of non-combatants, such as medics, journalists, supply contractors, and civilian crew members, are also entitled to prisoner-of-war status when they are affiliated with or have special permission to accompany the armed forces. In a nutshell, prisoners of war are combatants who have fallen into enemy hands in an international armed conflict. Customary rules bind all parties to armed conflict. Today, 174 States are party to Additional Protocol I, 169 to Additional Protocol II and 79 to Additional Protocol III. Alongside treaties, customary law can fill gaps where treaties are not applicable or where treaty law is less developed, as is the case for NIAC. They are complemented by the two Additional Protocols from 1977, the first one regulating international armed conflicts and the second one non-international armed conflict, as well as the Third Additional Protocol from 2005, which creates the red crystal emblem alongside the red cross and the red crescent. Very few international treaties have gained this level of support. IHL is universal: all parties fighting in a conflict are obliged to respect IHL, be they governmental forces or non-State armed groups. The Geneva Conventions, which are central to IHL, have been ratified by all 196 States, making IHL a universal body of law. The rules that apply depend on whether a situation is an international or non-international armed conflict. Some rules of IHL continue to protect victims of armed conflicts even after they have ended (eg. NIACs involve governmental armed forces fighting against one or more non-state armed groups, or such groups fighting each other. IACs are armed conflicts among two or more States. adopting legislation, teaching and training on IHL) it does not apply outside of armed conflict. IHL offers two systems of protection: one for international armed conflict and another for non-international armed conflict. Apart from a few obligations that require implementation in peacetime (e.g. IHL applies only in situations of armed conflict. IHL is also known as 'the law of war' or 'the law of armed conflict'. IHL is made up of treaties (the Geneva Conventions and their Additional Protocols are the main ones) and customary international law. It protects persons who do not, or no longer, take part in the fighting (including civilians, medics, aid workers, wounded, sick and shipwrecked troops, prisoners of war or other detainees), and imposes limits on the means and methods of warfare (for instance, the use of certain weapons). International humanitarian law (IHL) is a set of rules that seeks, for humanitarian reasons, to limit the effects of armed conflict. International humanitarian law: what are we talking about? You limit as much as you can the impact of your warfare on women and children, as well as on other civilians. The ICRC maintains a dialogue with arms carriers and influential groups to ensure that the rules of international humanitarian law are known and understood.
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