Prisoners exchanged occurred throughout history; a number of large exchanges took places, for example, during the 8th century or so in the Middle East region (see
Arab–Byzantine prisoner exchanges).
Modern era Geneva Conventions Under the
Geneva Conventions, prisoners who
cannot contribute to the
war effort because of
illness or disability are entitled to be repatriated to their home country. That is regardless of number of prisoners so affected; the detaining power cannot refuse a genuine request. Under the
Geneva Convention (1929), this is covered by Articles 68 to 74, and the annex. One of the largest exchange programmes was run for
prisoners of war by the
International Red Cross during
World War II under these terms. Under the
Third Geneva Convention of 1949, that is covered by Articles 109 to 117. The
Second World War in Yugoslavia saw a brutal struggle between the armed forces of the
Third Reich and the
communist-led Partisans. Despite that, the two sides negotiated prisoner exchanges virtually from the beginning of the war. Under extraordinary circumstances, these early contacts evolved into a formal exchange agreement, centered on the creation of a neutral zone, possibly the only such in occupied Europe, where prisoners were regularly swapped until late April 1945, saving several thousand lives. ==See also==