Surrender

Abstract

A unilateral act whereby, by putting their hands up, throwing away their weapons, raising a white flag or in any other suitable fashion, isolated members of armed forces [1] or members of a formation clearly express to the enemy during battle their intention to cease fighting. Surrender should not be confused with capitulation. Surrender is always unconditional, since it is not subject to a convention between the opposing parties. In international law, an isolated member of the armed forces or members of a formation who surrender are considered hors de combat [2] and must not be made the object of attack. Feigning surrender is an act of perfidy [3] and is therefore forbidden.