Brainwashing of prisoners of war

The war crime of POW brainwashing has come to be an increasing possibility in ideological conflicts.

During the Second World War, prisoners were subjected to propaganda and a very few were subverted. The stress of confinement with its hardships and privations, and the fear of death, were the influencing factors. Concerted psychological behaviour and thought modification techniques applied to POWs were not evident as a feature of modern conflict until the Korean War.