释义 |
mercenary n. A person recruited to fight in an armed conflict for private gain who is neither a national of a party to the conflict nor a member of its armed forces. Mercenaries are not entitled to combatant status and, if captured, are therefore not entitled to prisoner-of-war status for the purposes of protection under the Geneva Conventions. British officers undertaking such service (e.g. in Oman) were commonly known as contract officers. See also foreign enlistment. |