The Geneva Conventions are the essential basis of international humanitarian law applicable in armed conflicts. They evolved from rules of customary international law binding on the entire international community. In the second part of the nineteenth century, when the codification of international law started, most of these rules were included in international treaties, beginning with the 1864 Geneva Convention and the 1899 and 1907 Hague Conventions.

With contemporary wars continuing to produce disastrous effects, the Geneva Conventions signed on August 12, 1949, and two additional protocols adopted on June 8, 1977, are the most important treaties for the protection of victims of war. The treaties adopted include:

• The Geneva Convention for the Amelioration of the Condition of the Wounded and Sick in Armed Forces in the Field (Convention I)
• The Geneva Convention for the Amelioration of the Condition of the...