One of the international treaties governing the protection of prisoners of war is the Third Geneva Convention of 1949. This convention establishes that prisoners of war must be treated humanely and protected from any form of torture or ill-treatment. For instance, Article 13 mandates that prisoners of war are safeguarded from violence, intimidation, and degrading treatment, including the use of torture.
While these protections are primarily designed for state actors in international armed conflicts, Common Article 3 of the Geneva Conventions extends these protections to non-state actors in non-international armed conflicts, including terrorist combatants. It stipulates that all persons, irrespective of their combatant status, must be treated humanely and prohibits the use of torture, cruel treatment, and other forms of inhumane or degrading treatment.