ABSTRACT
Within many legal and military circles, the ICRC is reasonably well known as the agency that conducts visits to prisoners of war (POWs) in international armed conflict. In 2004, at a time of increased attention within the United States to the treatment of “enemy prisoners,” James Schlesinger, former secretary of defense, referred to the ICRC as an organization that “is essentially an auditing function for detainees.”1 The organization visits more prisoners around the world, in various legal categories, than any other agency.
