The Status and Use of Hospital Ships in Times of Peace and War: Law of the Sea, Maritime Law and the Law of Naval Warfare

Abstract Hospital ships are vessels that designed or equipped and primarily used to provide medical surgical treatment nursing care for sick in-jured people at sea. Under the law of sea maritime law, such ves-sels not dealt with separately. Therefore, their status respective rules applicable them depend on entities operating them. If operated by armed forces a State exclusively government non-commercial purposes they qualify as warships or, if under command civilian master, other (“auxiliaries”) enjoy sovereign im-munity in all areas, including internal waters another State. private individuals, merchant vessels. The naval warfare distinguishes between military hospital op-erated parties conflict ships. latter may be national Red Cross/Red Crescent Societies, officially recognized relief societies, persons either an in-ternational neutral protection 1949 Geneva Convention II is subject comparatively strict conditions, some which have become obsolete light contempo-rary technologies novel threats.