To be entitled to POW status, captured persons must be lawful combatants entitled to combatant's privilege—which provides immunity from punishment for lawful acts of war, such as killing enemy …

Aug 10, 2025 · A prisoner of war (POW) is an individual held captive by a belligerent power during or immediately following an armed conflict. This status is rooted in international law, which aims to …

In 1973, American prisoners of war (POWs) were released from the terrible prisons of North Vietnam. How did the men survive the years of solitary confinement and the brutal torture that was all too …

National POW/MIA Recognition Day was established by Congress to honor those armed service members held captive, who returned or who remain missing, while fighting in the nation's foreign wars.

Oct 25, 2022 · Life as a POW meant many forced marches in subfreezing weather, solitary confinement, brutal punishments and attempts at political "re-education." Here prisoners received their first …

Jan 7, 2026 · prisoner of war (POW), any person captured or interned by a belligerent power during war. In the strictest sense it is applied only to members of regularly organized armed forces, but by …

The Third Geneva Convention Relative to the Treatment of Prisoners of War became the cornerstone of all modern POW law, a direct response to the failures of the past and a promise to future generations …

While their imprisonment may have meant an end to combat, for prisoners of war (POWs) held during World War II and the Korean and Vietnam Wars, incarceration marked the beginning of a new …

Each year, the third Friday of September is a day set aside to remember the more than 83,000 U.S. service members who remain classified as either prisoners of war or missing in action. National …

Jun 1, 2022 · In international armed conflict, such persons are known as prisoners of war (PoWs) and have always been particularly vulnerable to abuse, due to their affiliation with the enemy and the fact …