Combatant

Combatants are not afforded immunity from being directly targeted in situations of armed conflict and can be attacked regardless of the specific circumstances simply due to their status, so as to deprive their side of their support.

However, it did state under Article 13 of the protocol that civilians "shall enjoy general protection against the dangers arising from military operations" until "they take a direct part in hostilities.

If there is any doubt as to whether the person benefits from "combatant" status, they must be held as a POW until they have faced a "competent tribunal" (Article 5 of the Third Geneva Convention) to decide the issue.

The following categories of combatants qualify for prisoner-of-war status on capture: For countries which have signed the "Protocol Additional to the Geneva Conventions of 12 August 1949, and relating to the Protection of Victims of International Armed Conflicts" (Protocol I), combatants who do not wear a distinguishing mark still qualify as prisoners of war if they carry arms openly during military engagements, and while visible to the enemy when they are deploying to conduct an attack against them.

[4] On October 7, 2021, a former Taliban commander was indicted by a federal grand jury in New York for the June 26, 2008 attack on an American military convoy that killed three U.S. soldiers and their Afghan interpreter, and October 27, 2008 shooting down of a U.S. military helicopter during the War in Afghanistan[11] (the conflict became non-interstate not long after the United States invasion of Afghanistan ended on December 7, 2001).

Afghan soldiers on patrol in 2011, during the War in Afghanistan . As adult armed personnel in active service with a military force, they would legally be considered combatants and therefore could launch targeted attacks against, or be subject to targeted attacks by, opposing armed forces.