unlawful combatants

Unlawful combatants are people who engage in armed conflict without meeting the legal criteria for combatant status under international law—typically by not wearing uniforms, not carrying arms openly, or not belonging to a recognized military chain of command.

The term gained prominence after 2001 when the U.S. government used it to classify detainees at Guantánamo Bay, arguing they fell outside Geneva Convention protections.

Critics contend the designation creates a legal gray zone that permits indefinite detention without trial.

Also called illegal combatants or, more neutrally, unprivileged belligerents.