Surrender (military)
See surrender for other meanings of the word. |
Balian of Ibelin surrendering the city of Jerusalem to Saladin, from Les Passages faits Outremer par les Français contre les Turcs et autres Sarrasins et Maures outremarins, ca. 1490. |
To
surrender is when
soldiers give up fighting and become
prisoners of war, either as individuals or when ordered to by their
officers. A
white flag is often used to surrender, as is the gesture of raising one's hands empty and open above one's head.
The
Geneva Convention states that prisoners of war should not be mistreated or abused.
United States Army policy states that surrendered persons should be treated according to the "5 S's" until turned over to higher authority.
Silence: so that they cannot plan an escape attempt.
Search: for
weapons or items of intelligence value.
Secure: tie up and/or guard carefully at all times, particularly at first.
Safeguard: do not allow the dangers of the battlefield to hurt them
Separate:
soldiers from
officers, men from women,
combatants from
civilians, to make them easier to control.
Entire nations can also surrender in an attempt to end a
war or military conflict. This is done through the signing of an
armistice or
peace treaty.
*
Unconditional surrender*
Conditional surrender*
Laws of war
