Prisoner of war
A prisoner of war (POW) is a person who is held captive by a belligerent power during or immediately after an armed conflict.
In the strictest sense, it is applied only to regularly organized armed forces members. Still, by broader definition, it has also included guerrillas, civilians who openly take up arms against an enemy, or noncombatants associated with a military force.
It is a detained person as defined in Articles 4 and 5 of the Geneva Convention Relative to the Treatment of Prisoners of War of August 12, 1949. In particular, one who, while engaged in combat under orders of his or her government, is captured by the enemy's armed forces. As such, he or she is entitled to the combatant’s privilege of immunity from the municipal law of the capturing state for warlike acts which do not amount to breaches of the law of armed conflict. For example, a prisoner of war may be, but is not limited to, any person belonging to one of the following categories who has fallen into the power of the enemy: a member of the armed forces, organized militia, or volunteer corps; a person who accompanies the armed forces without actually being a member thereof; a member of a merchant marine or civilian aircraft crew not qualifying for more favorable treatment; or individuals who, on the approach of the enemy, spontaneously take up arms to resist the invading forces.
Prisoner of war. Department of Defense Dictionary of Military and Associated Terms. United States: Joint chiefs of staff Washington dc. Retrieved from: https://www.academia.edu/4492332/Dictionary_Of_Military_Terms.
Prisoner of war. Online Encyclopedia Britannica. Retrieved from: https://www.britannica.com/topic/prisoner-of-war.
Prisoner of war. BabelNet. Retrieved from: https://babelnet.org/synset?id=bn%3A00063925n&orig=Prisoner%20of%20war&lang=EN.