Military History

» Brent Sedo - When did the rules change?

Although I know the "rules" were sometimes broken, I also know that at least through WW II, medical personnel were prohibited by the Geneva Convention from carrying weapons in combat, and the vast majority did not . In fact, it was for this reason the US Army created the Combat Medic Badge, to recognize (and ensure the proper bonus in pay) medical personnel who had been in close combat with the enemy, but who were not eligible for the Combat Infantryman's Badge.

However, with Canadian troops fighting in Afghanistan, I've seen a couple photos - including in the paper today - of troops described as medics carrying weapons and taking their place on patrol or in combat indistinguishable from other infantry troops.

I'm just wondering if anyone knows if/when/why/how this change in the Geneva Convention rule of war took place?

Thanks

» Christopher Eger - When did the rules change?

The Geneva convention states (in Convention I, Art. 22)
"Medical units may have personnel who carry arms for self-defense or for the maintenance of order; may be protected by a picket, by sentries, or by an escort;"

US army medics detached to combat units as well as navy corpsmen assigned to marine units carried personal weapons in Vietnam, Korea and today and used them.

Most NATO countries such as Canada, follow the same practice.

Chris Eger
MilitaryHistory@suite101.com

» Brian Tubbs - Chaplains

Another twist on this is with chaplains. There remains a debate within the US military as to whether chaplains should be allowed to carry weapons for self-defense. Present Army policy is "no," based on international treaties (Geneva Convention being the predominant one) that decrees chaplains as "noncombatants."