POW stands for Prisoner of War. It denotes the protected status of certain people who fall into the power of the opposing party in an international armed conflict. The status determines, among other matters, the identity information required during questioning and the treatment that the detaining power is obliged to provide.
When prisoner-of-war status applies
The typical case is a captured member of a party's armed forces, including militias and volunteer corps forming part of those forces. For regular armed forces, the opposing party's refusal to recognise their government does not remove this entitlement. The international scope includes armed conflicts between states and occupation. A formal declaration of war is not required.
Civilians accompanying armed forces with their authorisation can also qualify for prisoner-of-war status. Examples include civilian members of military aircraft crews, war correspondents and supply personnel. The identity card to be issued for this purpose documents authorised accompaniment. These people belong to a protected category without thereby becoming combatants entitled to participate in hostilities.
Medical personnel and chaplains retained to assist prisoners of war have the distinct status of retained personnel. They are not considered prisoners of war in that role, but receive at least the protections of the prisoner-of-war regime and continue their medical or religious duties. They cannot be required to perform other work. A prisoner with a professional medical qualification who is not attached to their armed forces' medical service remains a prisoner of war even when assigned to care for fellow prisoners.
Identification, custody and protection
When asked to identify themselves, a prisoner of war is required to give only their surname and first names, rank, date of birth and service or personal number, or equivalent information. The identity card must be shown on demand and cannot be taken away from the prisoner. Questioning must take place in a language they understand; torture and other coercion to obtain information are prohibited.
The detaining power must treat prisoners of war humanely, protect them against violence, intimidation and exposure to public curiosity, and provide for their maintenance and necessary medical care. Internment is intended to prevent their return to hostilities and does not require a criminal conviction. Combatants cannot be punished merely for lawful participation in hostilities. Allegations of war crimes can, however, be prosecuted; such proceedings do not remove prisoner-of-war status.
If a person has committed a belligerent act and fallen into enemy hands, doubts about whether they belong to a protected category must be resolved by a competent tribunal; they receive the protections of the prisoner-of-war regime until that determination. The detaining power cannot remove an existing status by applying a different label to the prisoner.
Detention and hostage-taking
Detention initially describes deprivation of liberty. If a service member is detained by a foreign authority outside an international armed conflict, their military occupation alone does not establish prisoner-of-war status. There is also no distinct POW status in non-international armed conflicts. In those conflicts, people taking no active part in hostilities, including those no longer participating because they are detained, must be treated humanely; torture, degrading treatment and hostage-taking are prohibited.
In hostage-taking, a detained person is used under threats of injury, death or continued detention to exert pressure on a third party. The hostage-takers seek to compel, for example, a state or organisation to act or refrain from acting. They make the person's release or safety conditional on the demanded action or omission. This coercive mechanism can also be directed at a prisoner of war. The additional use of the prisoner as a hostage does not replace their protected status.
POW within SERE and CAC
The US Code of Conduct connects prisoner-of-war captivity with protecting military information and responsibility towards fellow prisoners. US service members are expected to avoid giving information or taking part in actions harmful to their comrades, and not to identify fellow prisoners who may hold particularly valuable knowledge. Leadership and cohesion also support care of sick and wounded prisoners. Rules against exploitation for information and propaganda do not prohibit every form of communication. Discussions about health and welfare concern prisoners' needs; capture cards are intended to notify families of their fate and whereabouts, and letters for personal contact.
The US framework also covers other hostile detention, such as hostage situations. In the Australian Conduct After Capture (CAC) model, Military Exploitation means detention by a foreign state's military forces; preparation addresses both prisoner-of-war detention by an authority complying with the rules and captors who violate the prisoner-of-war regime. Foreign Government Detention concerns state bodies such as police, border security or intelligence services, while Hostage Survival is that model's training context for detention by hostile groups.