The possibility of continued resistance by Japanese forces toward the end of 1945, contrary to the terms of the surrender agreement by the Japanese Government, again raised the problem of the status of guerrillas under the laws of war. This problem has arisen during almost every war in modern history. It arose at the conclusion of hostilities with Germany when there was speculation that some German forces would refuse to abide by the unconditional surrender.

The distinction between combatants and the civilian population has been characterized not only as one of the fundamental principles of international law, but as its greatest triumph. The purpose of this paper is to show that both in point of fact and in theory the distinction has been so whittled down by the demands of military necessity that it has become more apparent than real. On occasion belligerents still give lip-service to the doctrine but when confronted with a particular military situation in the course of actual combat activities in most cases they have either refused to recognize the distinction or, possibly in order to satisfy the requirements of their legal advisers, have extended the definition of combatant to include almost all important elements of the enemy's civilian population.