Law of Naval Warfare

The law of naval warfare is the body of international humanitarian law governing armed conflict at sea: the conduct of hostilities against enemy and neutral shipping, blockade, contraband, prize, the treatment of the shipwrecked, and the protection of hospital ships. It draws on the Hague Conventions, the 1949 Geneva Conventions and Additional Protocols, and customary law, with the 1994 San Remo Manual the most cited modern restatement. It is distinct from UNCLOS, which governs peacetime law of the sea.