United States of America
Practice Relating to Rule 87. Humane Treatment
Section C. Wounded and sick
The US Field Manual (1956) restates Article 12 of the 1949 Geneva Convention II.
The US Air Force Pamphlet (1976) provides: “One of the important principles relating to wounded and sick requires … humane treatment.”
The US Naval Handbook (1995) states: “Wounded and sick personnel falling into enemy hands must be treated humanely.”
The US Naval Handbook (2007) states: “Wounded and sick personnel falling into enemy hands must be treated humanely.”
The US Manual on Detainee Operations (2008) states:
Legal Considerations
a. As a subset of military operations, detainee operations must comply with the law of war during all armed conflicts, however such conflicts are characterized, and in all other military operations …
…
c. The four Geneva Conventions of 1949 are fully applicable as a matter of international law to all military operations that qualify as international armed conflicts … The principles reflected in these treaties are considered customary international law, binding on all nations during international armed conflict. Although often referred to collectively as the “Geneva Conventions,” the specific treaties are:
(1) [1949] Geneva Convention [I] … This convention … requires humane treatment for wounded and sick personnel who fall into enemy hands …
(2)
[1949] Geneva Convention [II] … This convention requires the humane treatment and protection of members of the armed forces and other persons at sea who are wounded, sick, or shipwrecked.
In 1987, the Deputy Legal Adviser of the US Department of State affirmed: “We support the principle that all wounded and sick and shipwrecked be respected and protected.”
According to the Report on US Practice, it is the
opinio juris of the United States that the wounded and sick in internal armed conflicts should be treated humanely.